Dhaka, Jan. 16 -- Finance and faith have collided in a decision that will reverberate through the country's banking sector.

Depositors of five Islamic banks, recently merged into a single state-backed entity, will receive no profit on their savings for the past two years.

Bangladesh Bank has justified this unprecedented move on the grounds that the banks are in loss, and under Shariah principles, losses preclude any profit.

Yet the timing and methodology have raised eyebrows.

Just a year ago, four of the five banks had reported profits for 2023, distributing dividends to investors and crediting profit shares to depositors' accounts.

Taxes were deducted at source, all according to standard banking practice. Now, those gains are being ...