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Trading Corporation of Bangladesh

autonomous · verified (verified 2026-05-17)

Profile

Head
Brigadier General Mohammad Foysal Azad
Role
Chairman
Annual budget
—
Staff
—
Established
1972
Legal basis
The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh Order, 1972 (President's Order No. 68 of 1972), promulgated under the Proclamation of Independence of Bangladesh and the Provisional Constitution of Bangladesh Order, 1972

TCB is executing its highest-scale distribution season on record: the Ramadan truck sale (February-March 2026, 450 trucks, ~3.5 million beneficiaries) was followed immediately by the Eid-ul-Azha truck sale (May 2026, 720 trucks, 2.88 million beneficiaries), with 72 lakh cardholder families receiving regular monthly subsidised rations in parallel. The Smart Family Card pilot (launched March 10, Bogura) is the flagship structural reform, targeting 2 crore beneficiary households nationally with Proxy Means Test selection and MFS cash transfers of Tk 2,500/month. Commerce Minister Muktadir has publicly committed to AI-based supply chain monitoring from import to retail and ward-level citizen oversight committees, framing TCB's transformation as a top government priority under the Tarique Rahman administration.

Recent activity

Provenance & notes

TCB was established on 1 January 1972 under President's Order No. 68 of 1972, issued by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to address post-liberation food and resource shortages. Its legal text is at bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd/act-397.html. Current Chairman Brigadier General Mohammad Foysal Azad (sometimes transliterated 'Foyshol Azad') was confirmed in office by February 26, 2026 (Dhaka Tribune); his exact appointment date could not be established from available sources -- head_since is set to the earliest confirmed date of office found. A previous chairman, Brigadier General Abu Saleh Md Golam Ambia, is referenced in an earlier Daily Sun headline; the transition to Foysal Azad occurred during early 2026. Staff count and annual budget figures are not published in accessible primary sources; null values reflect absence of verified data, not zero. The Family Card is a joint initiative of TCB and the Ministry of Social Welfare / SSPS Programme; TCB administers the commodity-purchase component (Smart Family Card OMS) while the Ministry of Social Welfare administers the Tk 2,500 monthly cash transfer component. The AI-based supply chain monitoring commitment (May 11, 2026, Commerce Minister Muktadir) is a stated policy intention, not yet an operational system -- no procurement or contract has been confirmed in public sources as of May 17, 2026. The Wikipedia article references Brigadier General Md Mostofa Iquebal as a past chairman; cross-checked against Dhaka Tribune (Foysal Azad as current) which is more recent and specific. activity_score of 9 reflects TCB's exceptional operational tempo: two major truck-sale campaigns and a flagship social protection pilot all within the 90-day window.

Sources