A Chattogram court has imposed a travel ban on Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury, chairman of HRC Group and former chairman of ONE Bank, and his wife Farzana Chowdhury over a default case.

The order was passed today (October 16) by Justice Mujahidur Rahman of the Chattogram Money Lending Court in connection with a default case filed by Southeast Bank.

Rezaul Karim, assistant moneylending court, said Southeast Bank had initiated proceedings against HRC Group in December 2022 to recover nearly Tk 12.39 crore.

“On the whole, it appears to the court that these are willful defaulters. According to the provisions of the Banking Companies Act, a defaulter cannot hold the post of director in any bank. Therefore, Sayeed Hossain has was ordered to leave his post as director of One Bank on September 1,” he added.

Southeast Bank sources said HRC Group obtained a loan from its Agrabad branch in 2009 and has since rescheduled the loan several times, till 2019, without making any repayments. Additionally, the loan was granted without collateral.

After reviewing the case, the court noted that Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury and his wife, Farzana, hold shares in One Bank valued at Tk 84.90 crore, indicating their ability to repay the loans. However, the court determined that they had exploited legal procedures to avoid repayment of their unpaid debts.

In addition to the Tk 12 crore owed to Southeast Bank, HRC Group also owes Tk 1.72 billion to Standard Bank, as noted by the court.