48,586 MFS accounts suspended for online gambling: State minister

The Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) has suspended 48,586 personal Mobile Financial Services (MFS) accounts on charges of involvement in online gambling, betting, and hundi, State Minister for Finance Wasika Ayesha Khan said today (9 May).

She said this while replying to a tabled question from Treasury Bench Lawmaker M Abdul Latif on behalf of Finance Minister Abul Hasan Mahmud Ali in the House.

Mentioning that the country has been losing foreign currency due to the increase in gambling and hundi, the state minister said that the BFIU and other related law enforcement agencies have been working together to prevent all types of money laundering, including online gambling, betting, and hundi.

She said that transactions through MFS and digital payments have increased to a large extent due to the huge scope for financial inclusion in the country.

Taking advantage of this technological development, some unscrupulous gangs are involved in criminal activities such as online gambling, gaming, forex, cryptocurrency trading, and hundi, Wasika informed.

"As a result, money laundering is increasing, and the country is losing a lot of foreign currency, triggering the sufferings of the country's economy," she added.

The state minister said that so far, 5,766 agents have been sent to CID to take legal action against them. Of them, the government cancelled 5,029 MFS agents on suspicion of involvement in hundi transactions.

She informed the House that 21 money changer agents and 39 accounts related to them were sent to the CID on suspicion of association with Hundi.

As many as 10,666 MFS agent accounts were blocked for their alleged involvement in hundi, gaming, betting, and cryptocurrency as per the instructions of BFIU, she added.