Bank Asia auctions assets of Partex Coal to recoup Tk100cr in defaulted loans

As part of a strong recovery drive, Bank Asia has put the mortgaged assets of Partex Coal, a concern of Pertex Group, on auction to recover default loans of over Tk100 crore.

The company is owned by Rubel Aziz, who is also a director of another well-reputed private commercial City bank.

Bank Asia, listed on the stock market, saw a significant rise in default loans to 14.35% of its total disbursed loans in March 2025, which was 10% in 2024, according to the Bangladesh Bank data.

At the end of March, its total non-performing loans (NPL) stood at Tk3,632 crore, up from Tk2,919 crore in 2024.

Due to the rising NPL, Bank Asia had to keep higher provisions amounting to Tk1,076 crore in 2024, which was 58% higher than the previous year.

Sohail RK Hussain, managing director of Bank Asia, told TBS, "As per the law, the company failed to repay its loan instalments on time, which has led the loan to become classified as defaulted. Therefore, in accordance with legal procedures, an auction has been called to sell the company's mortgaged property for loan recovery."

He added, "We always believe in negotiation when it comes to loan recovery. While we pursue legal procedures against defaulters, we also keep the door open for negotiation. If the company repays the dues before the auction date, we will suspend the auction notice."

Sohail further stated, "The current owners of the company, being defaulters, will certainly face consequences. So, it's in their best interest to repay the loan on time."

Meanwhile, Rubel Aziz commented on the matter, saying, "We have been struggling since the Covid-19 pandemic. Even though the pandemic has passed, we have had to face a series of global challenges. On top of that, the current economic situation in the country is not business-friendly, which has prevented our operations from returning to normal."

He added, "We have a loan limit of Tk350 crore with the bank. However, due to the dollar shortage, the bank was unable to open our LCs (Letters of Credit), which disrupted our imports and adversely affected our business."

Rubel also said, "None of our business entities have ever defaulted on a bank loan. We will also repay this loan within the stipulated time."

The bank's Mohakhali Branch in Dhaka announced the decision following the provision of the Money Loan Court Act, 2003, according to an auction notice published in the newspaper recently.

Bank Asia has floated tenders for the sale of the mortgaged properties on a loan-consolidation basis, with bids open until 3 August this year.

According to the notice, Partex Coal, which imports and sells coal in the local market, had an outstanding loan of Tk116.45 crore as of 9 July. Bank Asia said the loans became classified due to non-payment despite repeated demands and notices.

After obtaining legal authority to sell the mortgaged properties under the Money Loan Court Act, the bank decided to proceed with the auction. The mortgaged assets comprise 259.36 decimals of land, including factory buildings, located across Dhaka and Gazipur.

In the auction notice, Bank Asia named Rubel Aziz and late MA Hashem, founder of Partex Group, along with five others, as mortgagors.

Partex Coal was incorporated in December 2014 and started its commercial operation in March 2015. The coal import business of Partex Group began in 2014 under the name of MA Hashem and Company, which is another concern of the group. However, later Partex Coal was formed and from March 2015, the coal import business started under the name of the company. 

The company imports coal from Indonesia and South Africa. It sells the imported coal mainly to brick brokers through its seven sales points throughout the country, according to the company's website.