The state-owned Janata Bank has taken initiative to auction the assets of the Globe Janakanta Industries as part of the default loan collection. Interested bids have been asked to submit the application to the court within the stipulated time.
According to the bank’s notification, those wishing to participate will have to submit ten percent of the reserved price in the form of pay-order or bank drafts. The bid will be called according to the rules of the court during the auction. However, the bank or the court will not take responsibility if any dispute arises after the sale of the asset.
According to sources, the Globe Janakantha Group was given a large loan on the recommendation of former prime minister’s adviser Salman F Rahman in 2021. In September of that year, Janata Bank approved a loan of around Rs 225 crore in favour of five institutions.
There are a total of eight companies under the Globe Janakanta industry family, including the Globe Metal Complex, Globe Intelligencesides, Globe Cables, Globe Printers, and Daily Janakantha. At present, most of the institutions are inactive. In March, the daily ‘Janakantha’ shut down their prints and online activities.
Hafizur Rahman, former chief operating officer (COO) of the company, said the group has a huge debt pressure. According to him, about 350 to 400 creditors are owed and most of the assets are mortgaged to the bank.
Meanwhile, the Janata Bank is in a vulnerable state under the pressure of default loans of large industrial groups. According to the latest estimates, a large part of the total loan disbursed by the bank has been identified as defaulters. The company is also facing challenges in recovering large groups like Beximco, S Alam, Thermex and Annontex.
Managing Director of the bank Md. Mozibur Rahman said that according to the law, the first attempt to collect the loan through auctions is done. If this is not successful, legal action will be taken in the next phase.
According to analysts, the initiative to auction the assets of the Globe public has brought forward the ongoing challenge to recover defaulted loans in the country’s banking sector.