IDRA appoints govt admin to oversee Baira Life Insurance

Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA) has cancelled the board of directors of Baira Life Insurance company and appointed a government administrator to oversee the company's proceedings.

In October 2019, the IDRA suspended Baira Life’s business license for mismanagement, corruption, non-settlement of insurance claims and numerous customer complaints.

In this regard, IDRA recently sent a letter, signed by its director Md Shah Alam, to the insurance company’s chairman.

The letter said that Joint Secretary Humayun Kabir has been appointed as a government administrator to the company. Also, the company cannot hold any meeting without his permission.

Insurance authority officials told The Business Post that the company has breached nine sections and subsections of the Insurance Act.

The insurance authority had received complaints against Baira from its customers of not paying out claims of over Tk 5,000 crore.

There is a possibility that ultimately the company will face liquidation, said several regulatory officials on condition of anonymity.

All the unpaid insurance claims will be settled under regulatory monitoring before any such steps are taken against the company.

However, Baira has not submitted a valuation report on its liability position.

Starting its journey in 2000, Baira Life was focused on serving non-resident Bangladeshis.

Although the company's board of directors had been embroiled in embezzlement and an extreme lack of governance and did not allow the company to achieve its goals. In the last 18 years, the company saw 17 chief executive officers joining and leaving because of board members' unprofessional interruptions.

For remaining non-listed with the stock market over the years, the company was fined but did not pay.

Moreover, its yearly license renewal also has not been done in the last five years.