Dhaka, Oct. 24 -- Bangladesh's banking sector is at a crossroads. Years of political interference, corruption, and mismanagement have left a trail of non-performing loans worth nearly Tk 5 lakh crore. Yet, as policymakers scramble to merge failing banks and inject billions of taxpayers' money, experts warn that the true culprits-the bank looters-remain largely unpunished.

At a seminar titled "Bangladesh's Banking Crisis: The Way Forward" on18 October, speakers stressed that genuine banking reform cannot succeed without accountability. The event, organised by the Cosmos Foundation with the United News of Bangladesh (UNB) as media partner, drew economists, bankers and policy analysts.

"The effort to recapitalise failing banks repeats a sh...