BSEC fines Haji Ahmad Brothers Securities Tk10 lakh

The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has slapped a fine of Tk10 lakh on stock brokerage firm Haji Ahmad Brothers Securities Limited for multiple regulatory non-compliances, including maintaining deficits in its Consolidated Customers' Account (CCA) and violating Beneficiary Owner (BO) account guidelines.

The regulator's action follows an inspection by a Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) team, which revealed significant discrepancies in the brokerage's operational procedures. The inspection found recurring deficits in the firm's CCA reconciliation. Notably, on 13 June 2022, the CCA faced a deficit of over Tk2.09 crore against total client payables of Tk11.35 crore. Deficits were also recorded on multiple dates in 2024.

Furthermore, inspection reports revealed unauthorised cash withdrawals from the CCA, violating securities rules that require all client transactions to be routed through account payee cheques or approved banking channels.

The brokerage also opened and maintained multiple BO accounts using the same mobile numbers, email addresses, and bank accounts for different clients, breaching BSEC directives designed to ensure proper KYC (Know Your Customer) compliance.

According to an enforcement order issued on 10 August, the brokerage house must deposit the fine within 30 days, failing which legal action will follow.

In response to the show-cause notice, Haji Ahmad Brothers Securities claimed the CCA deficits stemmed from software migration issues, interpretation gaps regarding interest treatment, and legacy account structures. The firm stated it had rectified its procedures and restored a positive account balance.

However, the BSEC rejected the explanations, stating that the deliberate non-compliances harmed general investors and undermined market discipline.