Bangladeshi share market scandal

Yet another scandal has hit the share market. Asset management firm LR Global Bangladesh has used mutual funds of the share market to set up a cow-fattening drug manufacture and marketing firm. It has used about 60 million taka of investors` funds to establish this 150 million company, Guardian Healthcare. Also, about 250 million taka has been used to invest in Thyrocare Bangladesh, a disreputable diagnostic firm founded in August 2013. Other than that, a total of 118 million taka and 36 million taka was invested in nondescript companies Property Investors and Tribeca Management respectively. In this manner, four companies have been formed and about 464 million taka of mutual funds has been removed in the name of investing in these countries. Prothom Alo`s investigations have revealed that the addresses of Property Investors, Tribeca Management and Thyrocare Bangladesh are the Gulshan and RK Mission Road offices of LR Global. And the Guardian Healthcare address is the Kalabagan Lake Circus home of the company`s Chairman and Managing Director. While Guardian and Thyrocare do actually exist, no trace could be found of the other two companies. LR Global is blatantly violating the Securities and Exchange Commission (Mutual Fund) rules. Investors unwilling to take risks put their money in mutual funds and their combined funds are invested in various shares. This was the function of LR Global as an asset management firm, but instead it has unscrupulously misappropriated the funds. Concerned persons see this as the latest share market scam, a criminal offence. Such a manipulation is unprecedented in the country`s share market. LR Global has been involved in other discrepancies in asset management, for which the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has decided to take action against it.