BFIU seeks bank account, transaction details of Salman Muqtadir

The Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) has sought detailed information on the bank accounts and financial transactions of content creator Salman Muqtadir.

The financial intelligence agency sent instructions to banks and financial institutions across the country on Wednesday, asking them to provide information on accounts held in Muqtadir’s name.

Several bank officials confirmed receiving the request.

The information sought includes account-opening forms, customer identification and KYC documents, account statements and transaction details.

Banks have also been instructed to submit related financial information to the BFIU within the specified deadline. Reports said some banks were given an urgent timeframe to provide the information.

The BFIU request does not itself establish any wrongdoing, and it was not immediately clear why the agency sought Muqtadir’s financial information. The BFIU has not publicly linked the request to any specific allegation or investigation.

The development comes days after an attack on Muqtadir’s BrownFish Studio at New Gini Properties in the capital’s ECB Chattar area on September 26. The studio, the housing company’s office and nearby establishments were reportedly vandalised and looted during the incident.

New Gini Properties director Saiful Islam Bhuiyan subsequently filed a case with Cantonment Police, naming 13 people and several unidentified individuals. The allegations include trespassing, vandalism, looting and theft. Several people have been arrested in connection with the case.

The circumstances surrounding the attack have remained disputed. Muqtadir initially alleged that he had been targeted over an extortion demand, while police said the violence appeared to stem from a land dispute involving New Gini Properties and landowners in the area.

Muqtadir later said no one had directly demanded money from him.

The incident has also prompted a wider discussion about the responsibility of high-reach content creators. Prime Minister’s Information and Broadcasting Adviser Zahed Ur Rahman on September 29 urged content creators with large audiences, including Muqtadir, to act more responsibly.