TL;DR:
- Beximco Group shuts down 24 factories including Shinepukur Ceramics due to severe liquidity crisis, affecting 40,000 workers and $30 million monthly textile exports.
- Workers protest for 5th consecutive day over unpaid October wages (Tk 80 crore monthly), blocking Chandra-Nabinagar Highway in Gazipur.
- Group faces Tk 23,000 crore in loans with Janata Bank, with Tk 19,000 crore becoming non-performing after vice-chairman Salman F Rahman’s arrest.
- BGMEA administrator suggests Beximco should sell assets rather than seek government intervention, while newly appointed central bank custodian questions the group’s financial management.
The Beximco Group, one of Bangladesh’s largest business conglomerates, has been forced to shut down 24 factories, including Shinepukur Ceramics, due to a severe liquidity crisis and mounting worker unrest. The closure has affected approximately 40,000 workers and halted the group’s monthly textile exports valued at $30 million.
Workers at the Beximco Industrial Park in Gazipur continued their fifth consecutive day of protests, blocking the Chandra-Nabinagar Highway. The situation escalated when protestors set fire to Amazon Knitwear factory near Zirani Bazar, with at least five people injured in clashes between workers and local residents.
Financial Turmoil
The group’s troubles began following the political changes in August 2024 and the subsequent arrest of its vice-chairman, Salman F Rahman, former private sector adviser to the ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The company’s inability to open new letters of credit (LCs) for raw material imports has paralyzed production operations.
Osman Kaiser Chowdhury, director of finance and corporate affairs at Beximco Group, stated: “Banks are unable to solve the LC problem. Now the government needs to intervene to resolve the liquidity crisis and resume production.”
Mounting Debt and Unpaid Wages
The conglomerate currently holds Tk 23,000 crore in loans with Janata Bank, with Tk 19,000 crore classified as non-performing in the July-September quarter. The group has failed to pay October salaries to its workers, with monthly wage obligations amounting to approximately Tk 80 crore.
Industry Response
Md Anwar Hossain, administrator of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), criticized the group’s approach, stating that a large corporation should not depend on government intervention for paying worker salaries. He suggested that Beximco should consider selling assets to generate liquidity.
The newly appointed central bank custodian, Md Ruhul Amin, questioned the group’s financial management, stating: “The liquidity crisis has emerged recently, but what about the money the group earned over the years? Did they actually loot the money?”
The crisis has begun to impact buyer confidence, with international clients expressing concerns about the appointment of a receiver, potentially affecting the export performance of other Beximco ventures in the near future.
Source: The Daily Star
