Staff Correspondent
Mr. M.A. Kashem has been re-elected as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Southeast Bank PLC.
He was unanimously re-elected as Chairman at the bank’s 796th meeting of the Board of Directors held on August 9, 2026, according to a press release.
M.A. Kashem is the Founder Chairman and Sponsor Director of Southeast Bank PLC. He has been associated with the bank since its inception and has played a significant role in its development and governance.
Besides his involvement in the banking sector, Kashem has a long-standing record of contributions to business, industry, education and social welfare in Bangladesh.
Kashem is a member and former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of North South University. He is also a Founder Life Member of the NSU Trust Foundation. He has served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of North South University four times and has also served several times as Chairman of the NSU Foundation’s Endowment Committee. He is also the Chairman of Rose Corner (Pvt.) Limited.
He previously served as President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), the apex organisation representing the business community of Bangladesh. He also served as Chairman of the Arbitration Tribunal of FBCCI.
Kashem is a former Chairman of the Association of Private Universities of Bangladesh (APUB), an organisation representing private universities in the country.
He also has extensive experience in the pharmaceutical 
and social welfare sectors. For a long period, he served as a member of the Board of Trustees of Hamdard Laboratories (Waqf) Bangladesh, one of the leading manufacturers of herbal medicines in the subcontinent.
Kashem also served as President of the SAHIC Trust (Society for Assistance to Hearing Impaired Children), a voluntary organisation that provides ear, nose and throat healthcare assistance to poor and disadvantaged patients. He is a life member of the organisation.
An eminent industrialist, education patron and philanthropist, Kashem has received several awards and recognitions for his contributions to business, industry, exports, taxation and education.
He received the President Export Trophy for his outstanding export performance in the 1982-83 and 1983-84 fiscal years. In recognition of his contribution to the industrial sector, he received the C.R. Das Gold Medal in 1995.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) recognised him as one of the country’s highest taxpayers in 2011 and again in 2016-17. He was also awarded the Abu Rushd Memorial Award in recognition of his contribution to the promotion of higher education.
Kashem has represented Bangladesh in a number of international trade and government delegations. In 1986, he led a 20-member FBCCI trade delegation to Far Eastern countries.
He also led a five-member government delegation to the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada under the sponsorship of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 1987. In 1985, he led a 12-member Bangladesh government delegation of the Export Promotion Bureau to countries of the European Economic Community (EEC).
As an industrialist and business leader, Kashem has travelled extensively across major cities around the world. He has led trade delegations organised by FBCCI and represented North South University in international engagements, promoting Bangladesh’s business and educational interests abroad.
His philanthropic activities also focus on education and healthcare in his home locality. He established the M. Kashem Trust to support education among primary and secondary-level students in his area.
The trust has established a 20-bed general hospital named Tareque Memorial-Ibrahim General Hospital in Chhagalnaiya upazila of Feni. The hospital operates as a non-profit institution and aims to provide healthcare services to local communities.
The M. Kashem Trust has also provided stipends and scholarships to meritorious students over the years as part of its efforts to promote education.
As part of his philanthropic activities, Kashem established Kashem Complex at Darogarhat in Chhagalnaiya. The complex includes a madrasa, mosque, Eidgah, public graveyard and various training facilities. Free residential houses have also been constructed for poor and destitute people in the locality.
Kashem is associated with a number of social, professional and recreational organisations. He is a member of Kurmitola Golf Club, Baridhara Cosmopolitan Club Limited, Gulshan Club Limited, Rotary Club of Dhaka West, National Shooting Club, Bangladesh Diabetic Association, Bangladesh Red Crescent Society and Shishu Hospital, Chittagong. He is also a life member of Anjuman Mufidul Islam.
With his long experience in banking, business, industry, education and social welfare, Kashem will continue to lead the Board of Directors of Southeast Bank following his unanimous re-election as Chairman.
