'It is public knowledge that
Bangladesh Bank has embarked on a massive ploy and scheme to extort money from plaintiff RCBC by resorting to public defamation and threats geared towards destroying RCBC's good name, reputation, and image, all with the intention of getting RCBC to pay
Bangladesh Bank money that RCBC does not have in its custody or possession and which it does not owe to
Bangladesh Bank,' the bank claimed.
If the
Bangladesh Bank was serious about recovering the money, they would have pursued their claims three years ago and not wait until days before the statute of limitations," said Tai-Heng Cheng.
RCBC then said that at least five reports - including those from SWIFT, FireEye (an international cyber security outfit), Bangladesh's own finance minister, its government-appointed panel, and a Bangladeshi expert - point to a conclusion that somebody inside
Bangladesh Bank would have made the heist possible.
Bangladesh Bank spokesman Subhankar Saha said its officials had yet to read the report or receive government instructions.
Kabir, a former finance secretary, was appointed as the central bank governor following the resignation of Atiur Rahman on March 15 amid a row over the heist of $101mn from the
Bangladesh Bank's account with the US Federal Reserve Bank of
'The complaint will allow us to finally get the information we, and the Philippine government, have been asking
Bangladesh Bank to provide.'
If an insider conspiracy could not be proved, then there is the large number of security lapses attributable to
Bangladesh Bank to look into.
The
Bangladesh Bank was able to retrieve $15 million from the Philippines after two years, while the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) ordered RCBC to pay a P1-billion fine for failing to prevent the withdrawal of stolen funds.
In one of the world's biggest cyber heists, the hackers stole the
Bangladesh Bank money held at the New York Fed in February 2016 using fraudulent orders on the SWIFT payments system and sent it to RCBC.
One way the Philippines could help, said Pimentel, is for the Department of Justice (DOJ), Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to step up efforts to run after Philippine-based money launderers who had a hand in stealing 81 million dollars from the
Bangladesh Bank.
Of the attempted theft of nearly $1 billion, $81 million from
Bangladesh Bank's account in New York was sent by hackers to the Philippines, and another $20 million to Sri Lanka.
Unknown hackers breached the computer systems of
Bangladesh Bank and in early February attempted to steal $951 million from its account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which it uses for international settlements.
