Evaly’s liabilities to clients, suppliers soar Tk 379cr a year

Controversial e-commerce platform Evaly’s liabilities to customers and products suppliers have increased by Tk 379 crore to Tk 517 crore in just a year.

Its financial statement submitted to the commerce ministry on Thursday showed its total liabilities jumped by Tk 540 crore in just two years.

In FY 2020-21, the liabilities soared to Tk 543 crore, up from Tk 141 crore in the previous FY. In FY18-19, the amount was only Tk 3 crore.

Evaly’s liabilities to its 2 lakh customers stood at Tk 311 crore in FY21, which was Tk 128 crore in the previous FY. On the other hand, its liabilities to suppliers were Tk 206 crore, which was Tk 10.46 crore a year ago.

Though the liabilities to customers and suppliers increased sharply due to the high discount rates, Evaly dubbed the current situation “normal”. 

It said credit facility is a normal process in trade. Evaly Managing Director Mohammad Rassel noted that they had credit facility agreements with the suppliers. Credit grew with rising trade volume.

Responding to the commerce ministry’s query, Rassel explained that they have contracts with suppliers who make 15-20 per cent profit from sales through Evaly.

Rassel termed the current liabilities to suppliers “very normal” and “acceptable” but did not clarify when they will clear it.

Evaly claimed that it would settle customers’ liabilities of Tk 311 crore within the next five months by operating normally and attracting desired investment. 

Jamuna Group had previously expressed interest to invest Tk 1,000 crore in Evaly but it did not materialise.

“We have received the financial statement and information about Evaly’s liabilities on Sunday. We will review it and work on ways to settle the liabilities of the customers and suppliers,” Commerce Secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh told the Business Post. 

Evaly showed its brand value to be Tk 423 crore as of July 15, up from Tk 12.12 crore on June 30 last year. In 2019, the company put its brand value at Tk 54 lakh.

Secretary Ghosh said the company had lost its credibility. Its brand value will increase if it succeeds in regaining customers’ trust, he noted.

Meanwhile, the commerce ministry’s e-commerce cell suspected money laundering involving the company. “There are many loopholes in Evaly’s financial statement as we suspect huge money has been siphoned off from its account,” Hafizur Rahman, additional secretary and head of the e-commerce cell, told The Business Post. 

“We have requested the home ministry, Anti-Corruption Commission and Bangladesh Bank to look into the matter,” said Rahman.

He noted that none of Evaly’s suppliers had moved the court to realise outstanding dues under The Contract Act. Only customers had lodged complaints with the National Consumers’ Right Protection. Some of the complaints have been resolved.

Rahman said they are optimistic about coming up with a better solution to the crisis. “We aim to settle the liabilities, not to put Evaly in trouble. We will follow legal procedures,” he added. 

Evaly Managing Director Rassel did not respond to requests for comment.