Jamuna Bank puts Salta Capital assets on auction

Jamuna Bank Ltd has put up the assets of brokerage firm Salta Capital Limited for auction to recover a default loan of Tk92 crore.

The bank, on Tuesday, published the auction notice for selling the property shown as mortgage by the securities house as per the Money Loan Court Act.

Shahajahan Iqbal, director of Salta Capital, told TBS, "Our directors have a fishing business, which is operated under the name of Salta Fishing Limited. A loan was taken in the name of the brokerage firm for this company, but it could not be repaid as the business was not profitable. We are trying to resolve the issue by consulting with the bank."

"This will not harm our brokerage business. The investors' investments there will be safe," he added.

"The bank allowed them enough time, but Salta Capital did not repay the loan. That is why, the lender has put up the brokerage firm's assets for auction," an official of the Jamuna Bank told The Business Standard on condition of anonymity.

"In December 2021, an auction was called to sell the company's assets to recover the debt. The proceedings were suspended at that time following the company's appeal," he said.

Salta Capital, an associate company of Chattogram-based Taher Group of Companies, is a member broker of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE). Many investors trade shares and maintain portfolios through this firm. It is also one of the top ten brokerage firms in the CSE.

According to the company's website, Salta Capital started its journey in 2001 by obtaining a brokerage license from the securities regulator. It has 30,000 plus clients and a daily average trade volume of Tk30-40 crore. It has branch offices in Dhaka, Sylhet, Rajshahi, and Chattogram.

Regarding the auction notice, M Shaifur Rahman Mazumdar, acting managing director of DSE, said, "We have heard about Salta Capital's problems regarding bank loans. We will look into the matter in the interests of investors who have invested through that company."

An official of the CSE said they cannot take action against Salta Capital unless the investors complain against the company.
In 2016, the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission fined Salta Capital for investing in Salta Fishing and Salta Computer, keeping client money in FDRs, paying salaries and allowances from consolidated customer accounts, short selling, and cash transactions.