By admin 
Singaporean billionaire Saiful Alam Masud, 64, is reportedly being investigated by Bangladeshi authorities for alleged financial crimes, including money laundering, totaling an estimated US$12.89 billion.
Mr Alam, a native of Bangladesh, is under investigation by multiple agencies, including the country’s central bank, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission.
Mr. Alam is the founder and chairman of S. Alam Group, a conglomerate with interests in food, manufacturing, real estate and telecommunications.
His lawyers, from Singaporean law firm WongPartnership, have dismissed the allegations as a smear campaign, claiming that Mr Alam has always conducted his business in accordance with all legal and regulatory frameworks.
Bangladesh’s CID alleges that Mr Alam laundered the $12.89 billion, including through Singapore. One claim concerns the creation of a Singapore-based company, Canali Logistics, which was allegedly financed with laundered money. Mr Alam is also accused of using forged documents and providing false information to secure loans from six Bangladeshi banks.
Bangladesh Central Bank Governor Ahsan Mansur has further alleged Alam’s involvement in financial misconduct within the country’s banking sector.
Mr Alam’s relatives are also being investigated. His wife, Farzana Parveen, 52, and their sons – Ahsanul Alam, 31, Ashraful Alam, 27, and Asadul Alam Mahir, 22 – face charges of money laundering and other financial crimes.
The family became permanent residents of Singapore in 2011 and citizens in 2023.
Mr Ashraful Alam is involved in a case filed by the ACC for embezzling 10.92 billion taka ($124.3 million) from Islami Bank Bangladesh. Ms Parveen and the two eldest sons are also accused of money laundering, while the youngest son, Mr Asadul Alam, is under investigation for alleged tax evasion.
Mr Alam’s lawyers claim the charges are politically motivated, driven by private media companies in Bangladesh. They allege that the interim government, which took power after the fall of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government, unlawfully froze the assets and accounts of the S. Alam Group, effectively crippling its operations.
The lawyers stressed that Mr Alam has not received formal notice of any investigation from authorities in Singapore or Bangladesh.
S. Alam Group has denied the allegations, saying there is “no truth” in the claims made by the governor of Bangladesh’s central bank, according to reports from the Financial Times.
Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) stated that foreign jurisdictions can request assistance under the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act if credible evidence is provided. This assistance may include sharing information on asset movements and executing foreign confiscation orders. MHA added that Singapore is cooperating with foreign authorities on asset sharing and recovery on a case-by-case basis.