British American Tobacco under$30b laundering probe

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has launched a full-scale investigation into allegations of forgery, irregularities, illegal asset acquisition and the laundering of an estimated US$20-30 billion involving British American Tobacco (BAT) Bangladesh.

According to official sources, the anti-graft body formed a one-member investigation team on 1 January after a preliminary review of a complaint reportedly found initial evidence supporting the allegations.

As part of the inquiry, the ACC has issued formal notices to the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms and the managing director of BAT Bangladesh, seeking extensive corporate and historical records.

ACC Assistant Director and investigating officer Md Sajid-ur-Rahman has requested certified documents to be submitted by 15 June.

In a letter dated 21 May, the ACC asked the RJSC to provide detailed incorporation records, constitutional documents, ownership structures, registered office information, factory details, capital structures, shareholding patterns, directors’ data and governance-related filings of Bangladesh Tobacco Company Limited, formerly Pakistan Tobacco Company Limited and later BAT Bangladesh.

The commission has also sought documentary evidence explaining how factories in Dhaka and Chattogram were transferred to BAT Bangladesh after Bangladesh’s independence in 1971, along with archival records relating to the transition.

An ACC official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the inquiry was initiated following allegations that the company’s post-independence abandoned assets should have vested in the state.

The official said that if state ownership had legally applied, historical patterns of profit repatriation abroad would have been materially different. He added that any proven fraud or irregularity in the ownership transfer process could potentially reclassify decades of overseas profit transfers as money laundering under Bangladeshi law.

According to the complaint, Pakistan Tobacco Company Limited, established in Karachi in 1947, opened factories in Chattogram in 1949 and Dhaka in 1965. Following Bangladesh’s independence in 1971, those assets were allegedly declared abandoned.

The complaint further claims that the company acknowledged losses of assets in Bangladesh in annual reports submitted to the Karachi Stock Exchange in the early 1970s and later sought compensation from Pakistani authorities.

It alleges that the abandoned assets should therefore have legally become state property under the Government of Bangladesh.

The complaint also accuses a syndicate involving former officials and business figures of facilitating the registration of Bangladesh Tobacco Company Limited through allegedly forged or disputed documentation, allowing operations to continue under BAT ownership. It further alleges that political and bureaucratic influence was used to pressure regulatory authorities during the process.

According to the allegations, between US$20 billion and US$30 billion may have been transferred abroad as corporate earnings over the past 55 years while certain senior officials were later linked to the company’s governance structure.

The ACC said verification of historical records in Dhaka, along with archival documents from Karachi and Islamabad through diplomatic channels, would be crucial in assessing the validity of the allegations.

Separately, ACC Deputy Director (Public Relations) Md Akhterul Islam confirmed that letters had been sent to multiple government agencies to verify the claims. He said legal action would follow if evidence of wrongdoing was established after document review.

The investigation remains ongoing, and the ACC said further action would depend on the findings of the inquiry.

Read More

Allegation of Tk50cr transaction rocks EDCL MD appointment

Company continues operations amid probe

Despite the probe, BAT Bangladesh continues to operate as one of the country’s largest listed multinational companies and is currently undergoing major restructuring. After more than six decades, the company is relocating its principal production facility from Mohakhali in Dhaka to Ashulia in Savar, where operations began in mid-2025.

The relocation followed a Supreme Court Appellate Division ruling on 28 May 2025 dismissing the company’s appeal regarding renewal of the Mohakhali factory lease. The company subsequently initiated the formal transfer of its manufacturing base and registered office to Ashulia.

According to market disclosures, BAT Bangladesh has invested around Tk297 crore in capacity expansion through internal funding and bank financing.

Its current shareholding structure shows UK-based Raleigh Investment UK Limited as the dominant shareholder with 72.91% ownership. Other shareholders include Investment Corporation of Bangladesh, Sadharan Bima Corporation, Bangladesh Development Bank Limited, alongside government and public holdings.

Although the company’s head office remains in Dhaka, the relocation process to Ashulia is underway. Its main cigarette manufacturing plant is now located in Savar while it also operates a green leaf threshing plant in Kushtia and a leaf re-drying plant in Manikganj, alongside multiple leaf collection and sales offices nationwide.
Its operations include the manufacture and distribution of cigarette brands such as Benson & Hedges, John Player Gold Leaf, Capstan, Star, Lucky Strike and Derby.

The company reported a net profit of Tk1,751 crore in 2024 which fell to Tk584 crore in 2025. It declared cash dividends of 300% in 2024 and 30% in 2025.

While the investigation remains at a preliminary evidentiary stage, ACC officials acknowledged that the scale and historical depth of the allegations make it one of the most significant corporate financial probes ever undertaken in Bangladesh.

Further developments are expected to depend on verification of decades-old corporate records and cooperation across multiple jurisdictions in the coming months.