“I came empty-handed,” former land minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury was quoted as saying by the Dhaka Tribune newspaper in 2014, “and I will go empty-handed.”
But now the ruling Awami League lawmaker finds himself at the epicentre of a burgeoning controversy surrounding his extensive UK property empire worth around £200 million, as reputed international media has brought the intricacies of international property ownership into the spotlight.
His vast empire comprises over 350 properties, ranging from luxury apartments in central London to residential buildings in areas with significant Bangladeshi communities, Bloomberg News reported on Sunday.
Far beyond a tale of financial prosperity, Saifuzzaman’s acquisitions prompt critical questions about legal oversight, transparency, and ethical practices in foreign investments.
His impressive portfolio in the UK encompasses a diverse range of real estate investments, from high-end apartments in prime London locations to strategic housing in Tower Hamlets and student accommodations in Liverpool.
The international news agency analyzed nearly 250 of his UK properties and found that almost 90% were classified as new builds when bought, a valuable component in a UK housing market suffering severe shortages.
The figures were based on a Bloomberg analysis of available Companies House corporate accounts in the UK, mortgage charges, and HM Land Registry transactions.
Furthermore, Saifuzzaman’s reach extends beyond the UK, with at least five properties in Manhattan, New York, adding a global dimension to his property footprint.
However, a concerning detail emerges when considering Saifuzzaman’s pre-election declaration of assets.
He was re-elected as an MP, but lost his cabinet post after the January 7 national election. He has since become the chair of the parliamentary committee for land.
On December 29 last year, a national English daily reported on Saifuzzaman’s properties in the UK. Based on the newspaper’s calculation from company filings publicly available on UK government websites, it found at least 260 properties in the UK, for which he has paid at least Tk1,888 crore.
The three-time Awami League lawmaker also has at least 537 mortgages against properties in the UK, a vast majority of which are in London.
However, his tax returns, submitted along with his affidavit to the Election Commission, state that he has no foreign income, The Daily Star reported.
The Bloomberg report said that in a pre-election declaration of his interests in December, Saifuzzaman listed his total assets at about $2.4 million and those of his wife, Rukhmila Zaman, at about $993,000.
He did not include his UK property holdings in the declaration of assets in Bangladesh. His 2022-23 salary as a minister of state is listed at about £10,000.
Bloomberg talked to Mezbaul Haque, a Bangladesh Bank spokesperson, who, without commenting specifically on Saifuzzaman, said: “While residing in Bangladesh, there is no provision for an individual to accumulate wealth abroad… As a general rule, we do not permit individuals to do so.”
Saifuzzaman falls into the category of a “politically exposed person (PEP),” as defined in the UK’s 2017 anti-money laundering legislation. It puts the onus on estate agents, lenders, property lawyers, and others involved in business transactions in the UK to have procedures in place to identify PEPs.
Although these individuals can engage in business transactions such as buying property, their involvement should attract extra scrutiny.
Bloomberg approached the companies named in its story, including financial services and legal firms involved in the property purchases for the Saifuzzaman-owned companies.
Legislative loopholes and transparency concerns
The case of Saifuzzaman underscores a broader issue concerning the UK’s foreign property ownership laws.
Advocates for transparency have long voiced concerns over the effectiveness of legislation designed to scrutinize purchases by politically exposed persons (PEPs).
Saifuzzaman, with his political background and significant international investments, exemplifies the challenges of ensuring accountability and transparency in such transactions.
The ability of a foreign politician to own and expand a property empire in the UK without including these assets in official declarations back home points to potential loopholes in both UK and Bangladeshi regulations.
This situation also highlights the UK’s attractiveness as a haven for foreign investment in real estate.
While such investments can bring economic benefits, including the development of new properties, they also pose questions about the impact on housing markets and local communities, especially in areas with high demand and limited supply.
The case prompts a reevaluation of how properties, particularly new builds, are marketed and sold to foreign investors and whether current legislative frameworks are adequate to manage and monitor these transactions effectively.
