BSEC names Masud Khan as new Chairman

Masud Khan, chairman of Unilever Consumer Care Limited, has been appointed as the new Chairman of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), marking a major leadership change at the country's capital market regulator.

Additionally, the government has also appointed three new commissioners to the commission.

The appointments were announced through separate notifications issued by the Financial Institutions Division under the Ministry of Finance on Thursday (June 4).

The newly appointed commissioners are, Dhaka Bank Securities Managing Director Nafeez Al Tarik, Supreme Court Lawyer Nahid Mahtab and Asha International Director (Finance) Tanwir Rahman Habib.

The new chairman and commissioners are scheduled to address a press conference later in the day.

The appointments came shortly after outgoing BSEC Chairman Khandaker Rashid Maksud and four commissioners submitted their resignations to the Financial Institutions Division earlier on Thursday. Officials said they stepped down citing personal reasons.

The resigning commissioners are Md Mohsin Chowdhury, Md Ali Akbar, Farzana Lalarukh and Md Saifuddin.

In a farewell statement issued after serving nearly 21 months in office, Rashid Maksud said he and his team had undertaken a series of reforms aimed at restoring discipline and strengthening the regulatory framework of the capital market during a challenging period.

He noted that five key regulations relating to margin loans, initial public offerings (IPOs), mutual funds, debt securities and whistleblower protection were finalized and published in the official gazette during his tenure. Draft regulations on corporate governance, auditing and corporate restructuring were also released for public consultation.

According to Maksud, draft amendments to the BSEC Act and the Capital Market Stabilization Fund Act were prepared and submitted to the Financial Institutions Division for further consideration.

Expressing gratitude to BSEC officials, market stakeholders and the government, the outgoing chairman said the reforms undertaken during his tenure were intended to strengthen transparency, accountability and investor confidence in Bangladesh's capital market.