BSEC seeks Aman Feed documents to probe irregularities

A committee set up to probe alleged irregularities in the financial statements and corporate governance of Aman Feed Ltd has sought specific documents from the company.

Aman Feed which manufactures and distributes poultry feed, fish feed, shrimp feed, and cattle feed, will have to submit the documents to the committee by 30 April 2021.

The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) formed the enquiry committee in October 2020 after it found irregularities in the activities of the company.

Sources said the inquiry committee might have noticed some irregularities and that is why it wants to carry out the investigation thoroughly.

The committee has sought copies of bank and cash ledgers from 1 July 2014 to 31 December 2020.

The investigators have also asked for the copies of all ledger books for land assets, land vendors, khajna (land revenue) receipts, land development expenses, building, and civil construction details, and summary sheets of raw material suppliers mentioning their names and addresses. 

Aman Feed has also been asked to provide the committee with a copy of their ledger relating to short-term and long-term loans from their inception till present, and all documents and correspondence with Mashreq Bank and AB Bank Ltd, relating to UPAS LC.

Additionally, the certified copies of income tax returns submitted to the National Board of Revenue (NBR) and tax assessment certificates for the 2015-2020 financial years have also been sought.

The commission had earlier formed a three-member committee to verify all the information in the audited financial statements from 2015 to 2020, and to look into the functioning of the board of directors and board committees as per corporate governance regulations.

Initial public offering proceeds and capital debt, and related  transactions between the company and other parties, were also supposed to come under scrutiny of the investigators.

The issue came to the forefront after AB Bank arranged an auction for the sale of the company's land and factory in September last year.

Aman Feed has secured a stay order from the High Court, which asked the company to pay Tk60 crore – Tk20 crore per month – to the lender by December 2020.

According to AB Bank, the company owed around Tk268 crore – including loans and their interest – to the lender till 31 July last year.

But the value of the company's factory and land in Sirajganj is only Tk70 crore.

The net profit of the company was Tk34.63 crore on 30 June 2020.

In 2020, it recommended a 12.5% dividend for its shareholders.