Mr. Iqbal Ahmed OBE DBA has been elected as the Chairman of the Board of Director of NRB Bank PLC. The Board of Directors elected him Chairman of the Bank in its meeting held on 23rd March, 2025. Mr. Ahmed was the Founder Chairman of NRB Bank PLC. and Chairman & Chief Executive of Seamark Group of companies and IBCO Food Industries Limited.
Mr. Iqbal, a seasoned businessman and well versed in a broad range of trade ventures around the world hails from Sylhet. Seamark Group grew from a small family run business to supply seafood and various food products worldwide. Iqbal pioneered the import and export of frozen seafood in refrigerated containers and was the first to import Black Tiger shrimps into the UK and the EU. It wasn’t long before he began to look at ways of expanding the family business, thus created Iqbal Brothers & Company (now IBCO Limited) in 1976, importing and distributing frozen seafood and all kinds of frozen food products.
His clear vision for the business has led to a string of prestigious awards for Seamark in the UK and in Bangladesh. He received his highest personal recognition when he was awarded an OBE (Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) at the Queen’s honours list in 2001 for his services to International Trade. He is a CIP (Commercially Important Person) in Bangladesh nearly every year between 2002 and 2025.
One of Iqbal Ahmed’s biggest achievements is the successful establishment of NRB Bank PLC. in Bangladesh, where he brought together 46 NRB (non-resident Bangladeshi) entrepreneur investors from all over the world to invest in Bangladesh. Iqbal had a vision of creating a financial institution for Nonresident Bangladeshi. He dreamt of unlocking a new horizon to the Bangladesh economy by facilitating NRB inward and outward investment to and from Bangladesh, assisting Bangladeshi enterprises to access international market and increasing the inflow of foreign remittances.
Despite his busy schedule Iqbal makes time for charity works. He is connected with, as sponsor, trustee or member, many charitable organizations in the UK and Bangladesh, mainly situated within the educational sector and healthcare involving rehabilitation, training and community work, including the development of Burunga Iqbal Ahmed High School and College for 1400 students in Sylhet. He has supported and raised funds for the Manchester Children’s Hospital Appeal, the Royal Manchester Eye Hospital Appeal and Ahsania Mission Cancer and General Hospital Appeal to name a few. He is the Chairman of UKBCCI (UK Bangladesh Catalyst of Commerce & Industry) which promotes business and entrepreneurship to young people in the UK and Bangladesh. He personally gets involve with his companies’ CSR and has formed a charity registered in the UK called the Iqbal Bros Foundation, which is currently fund raising for the Rohingya refugees.
