Dhaka, Oct. 18 -- Effective banking sector reform cannot be achieved without holding accountable those who looted banks during the past Awami League government, particularly after 2017, speakers said at a seminar on Saturday.

The effort to recapitalise failing banks repeats the shameful history in which ordinary people paid for the failure of banks, the salvation of which, after being looted under political protection, required large sums of taxpayers' money, they said.

The banking sector crisis is owed to systemic problems sustained by years of banking data manipulation by the past AL government, political lending, widespread corruption in the banking sector and bankers' failure to uphold professional ethics, the speakers said.

"Holdi...