Once a towering figure in Bangladesh’s corporate landscape, MA Khaleque built over a dozen institutions spanning banks, insurance companies, financial institutions, and private universities. He cruised Dhaka’s elite quarters in luxury cars surrounded by bodyguards, draped in renowned international brands, his properties scattered across the plush Gulshan and Baridhara neighbourhoods. Yet in a stark reversal of fortune, the businessman’s final chapter was one of profound isolation, ending in a death away from family. Khaleque, imprisoned on embezzlement charges, passed away on the night of December 13. He had been admitted to the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases after suffering a heart attack in jail.
No wife or child attended his final journey. With his immediate family settled permanently in Canada, his nephew Kabir Hossain collected the body from prison authorities. Precisely where Khaleque was buried remains unknown, despite inquiries. His death passed without public discussion.
Born March 23, 1947 in Pirojpur district, Khaleque held a master’s in business administration from the University of Dhaka. He founded banks, non-bank financial institutions, life and general insurers, and private universities. Yet he ultimately lost control of every single enterprise. At least ten companies accused him of embezzling BDT 70 billion. He sold his houses, cars, and most assets facing pressure from Anti-Corruption Commission investigations and corporate lawsuits. Authorities also seized many of his properties. Persistent allegations suggest he siphoned much of his illicit wealth to Canada — where his wife and children reside.
Khaleque played a pivotal role in establishing Prime Bank PLC, a second-generation private lender launched in 1995. He occupied virtually every key position on its board over the years. Beyond Prime Bank, he co-founded Prime Finance and Investment Limited, Prime Finance Capital Management Limited, Prime Insurance Company Limited, Prime Islami Life Insurance Limited, Prime Islami Securities Limited, Prime Prudential Fund Limited, Fareast Islami Life Insurance Company Limited, Fareast Finance and Investment Limited, Fareast Stock and Bonds Limited, and PFI Securities Limited. His empire also included Getco Limited, Getco Agro Vision Limited, Getco Telecommunications Limited, Maksons Bangladesh Limited, Maksons Bay Limited, HRC Technologies Limited, Prime Property Holdings Limited, and PFI Properties Limited. He also chaired the trustee board of private Primeasia University. He could not retain leadership in any of these institutions.
Azam J Chowdhury, chairman of East Coast Group and a fellow founding director of Prime Bank, observed Khaleque’s trajectory closely. “Khaleque was an organiser—not a man of significant personal capital,” he recalled. “Entrepreneurs across sectors trusted him, even advancing funds as working capital. He led companies in banking, insurance, finance and education. Tragically, he failed to honour that trust.”
Chowdhury added, “Over the past decade, around ten firms sued him for embezzling at least BDT 70 billion. Facing these cases, he sought permanent refuge in Canada where his family lives. But he was deported back home. Here, nearly all his assets—houses, cars, holdings—were confiscated. He lived out his final years in isolation.” Having been admitted to the hospital from jail, Khaleque died there. As Chowdhury put it, “His grim end offers stark lessons we must heed.”
According to ACC and related sources, Khaleque and his family members embezzled BDT 3.76 billion from Fareast Islami Life Insurance, BDT 3.05 billion from Prime Finance Securities, BDT 2 billion from Prime Islami Life Insurance, BDT 1.5 billion from PFI Properties, BDT 1.67 billion from Primeasia University, BDT 500 million from Fareast Stock and Bonds, BDT 200 million from Prime Islami Securities, and BDT 150 million from PFI Capital. Khaleque held chairman and key policy-making roles across these institutions. Several banks disbursed nearly BDT6 billion in loans to companies under his ownership, further compounding his debts. Those funds were never repaid to the lenders.
Business associates and sources confirm Khaleque began building enterprises in the 1980s, leveraging intellect and diligence rather than capital. He meticulously prepared incorporation documents and navigated government approvals; no trace of deceit marked his early career. Yet post-2010, his character shifted abruptly. He systematically siphoned funds from one institution after another and laundered money to Canada. He also began amassing houses and luxury vehicles domestically. By 2018, his financial misconduct surfaced across multiple organisations. After a failed bid to flee to Canada, he returned home. He was arrested and sent to jail this November in an ACC case involving embezzlement from Fareast Islami Life Insurance.
Prison authorities confirmed Khaleque had been held under case number 363/25 at Dhaka’s Ramna Police Station. Following a cardiac arrest, he was admitted to the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases at 11:36 pm on December 6. He later died on December 13 midnight while undergoing treatment there.
Assistant Inspector General of Prisons (Development) Mohammad Jannat Ul Forhad verified to Bonik Barta that Khaleque’s nephew Kabir Hossain collected the body.
Syed Mahbubur Rahman, managing director of Mutual Trust Bank, reflected on the trajectory of ill-gotten wealth, “No matter who you are, death inevitably comes. Many pile mountains of assets through fraud or theft. But such wealth evaporates before one’s eyes. MA Khaleque’s life stands as proof.”
He further said, “Society honours many entrepreneurs after death. Those who disregard rules or chase rapid riches through corruption face equally swift downfall.”
A parallel case emerged November 29 with the death of Tanvir Mahmud (55), managing director of Hallmark Group. Convicted to life imprisonment in a loan scam at state-owned Sonali Bank, he died at Dhaka Medical College Hospital at 10:30 pm. Eleven cases were filed in 2012 against Hallmark’s owners, executives, as well as several Sonali Bank officials for embezzling BDT 40 billion using forged documents. The scandal saw Mahmud and his wife Jasmine Islam imprisoned for over a decade.
As billions of taka were siphoned off from Sonali Bank through fake export bills and forged documents, Tanvir Mahmud was living a life of luxury. Ringed by bodyguards, he moved around the capital in a convoy of more than a dozen cars. At the time, Hallmark’s office was a regular gathering point for leaders of the then-ruling party.
Unprecedented banking frauds have scarred Bangladesh’s financial sector over the past fifteen years. Today, more than a dozen prominent businessmen are in jail for loan scams and related crimes.
Mohammad Muslim Chowdhury, chairman of Sonali Bank PLC, stressed accountability. Speaking to Bonik Barta, he said, “We witness powerful figures facing consequences within their lifetimes. Tragically, we seldom learn from these reckonings. Nothing good came of the Hallmark perpetrators’ lives. We must learn from this.”
He noted Tanvir Mahmud died in custody while his wife remains jailed, adding that assets seized under court orders have been transferred to the bank. “We’re now coordinating with the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority to attract foreign investment,” he added.
Kamran T Rahman, president of the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, issued a firm reminder: “No one stands above the law.” He said, “Every citizen, regardless of profession or status, must respect legal boundaries. Business leaders who imagine themselves untouchable commit an unforgivable error. We must also equally ensure no individual suffers unlawful punishment.”