Customs Seized 685 Kilograms of Smuggled Gold in 2019

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The provisional data published by the Dhaka Customs House indicates notable increase in gold smuggling acts.

As per Customs data, around 685 kilograms of smuggled gold were seized by authorities in 2019. The major sources of illegal gold imports were Dubai, Singapore, Oman and Qatar. The seized gold, worth approximately Tk342 crore will be handed over to the country’s central bank. The seizure of smuggled gold witnessed significant surge by over 43% from the prior year. The quantity of smuggled gold had totalled only 480 kilograms in 2018.

According to senior Customs officials, much of the gold smuggled into Bangladesh are smuggled to India through land borders.

The Customs Department expects rapid decline in gold smuggling in 2020, mainly on account of recent strict enforcement actions. The recently declared gold policy by the Bangladesh Bank (BB) will help to boost legal imports of bullion. As per the policy, dealership licenses for gold imports have been issued to a private bank and 17 businesses, initially for a period of two years.

Rough estimates indicate that around 80% of the total annual gold demand of the country is met by smuggled gold. Such illegal imports have been causing huge revenue loss for the country.