HRC Group

HRC Group is a Bangladeshi industrial conglomerate founded by entrepreneur Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury. It began on 14 March 1991 as a shipping agency serving the ports of Chittagong and Mongla, and subsequently developed into a diversified group with more than 20 subsidiaries and affiliated businesses. Its activities extend across transportation and logistics, publishing and media, tea and agricultural products, real estate, financial services, manufacturing, and information technology. The group's original shipping orientation remains visible through HRC Shipping Limited and HRC Freight Limited, while its broader service portfolio includes HRC Travels Limited, Travel Wise Limited, and Arkan Express Limited. In media, the group has been associated with Bengali and English newspaper publishing, including Jaijaidin, Protichitra, New Age, and Holiday. Its agricultural and tea interests include dairy and agro-product operations, tea estates, and packaged tea brands. The group has also operated in property development through HRC Properties Limited and Hamid Properties Limited. HRC's financial interests have included One Bank, LankaBangla Finance PLC., Bangladesh General Insurance Company Limited, and National Housing Finance and Investments Limited. Its industrial and technology-related activities include HRC Lighting Limited, HRC Lamps Limited, and Information Services Network Limited, identified in the reference material as an early private Internet service provider in Bangladesh operating under the Bangla.net name. The group's history has also included significant legal, security, and governance events. Two security guards were killed during a robbery at the group's headquarters in Karwan Bazar, Dhaka, in December 1998. In July 2008, Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury was arrested by joint forces on allegations involving money laundering and tax evasion; he was granted bail on 28 August 2008. In July 2020, Bangladesh Bank removed him as chairperson of One Bank after subsidiaries associated with HRC Group were reported to have defaulted on loans from various banks. Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury died on 15 July 2025. According to the supplied reference material, leadership of HRC Group subsequently passed to his three sons, Halif Raees Chowdhury, Hameem Raees Chowdhury, and Haziq Raees Chowdhury. The available material does not provide a complete current corporate structure, ownership breakdown, financial profile, or a definitive list of all active subsidiaries. HRC Group is therefore best characterized as a privately associated Bangladeshi diversified business group whose identity has historically been anchored in shipping while expanding into several domestic industries.

HRC Group was established on 14 March 1991 by Bangladeshi entrepreneur Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury. The business began as a shipping agency serving Chittagong and Mongla, two important Bangladeshi ports. Its initial focus on maritime agency services provided the foundation for later expansion into freight, travel, and other commercial activities. During the following decades, HRC Group developed into a diversified industrial group with more than 20 subsidiaries. Its shipping and logistics portfolio came to include HRC Shipping Limited, HRC Freight Limited, HRC Travels Limited, Travel Wise Limited, and Arkan Express Limited. The group also entered media, with interests associated with Bengali and English publications including Jaijaidin, Protichitra, New Age, and Holiday. Agricultural and consumer-product activities became another important area. HRC Dairies Limited and HRC Agrocom represent the group's agriproduct interests, while HRC Land Limited was associated with Clevedon Tea Estate and Dildarpur Tea Estate. HRC Products Limited produced tea under the Clevedon, Clone, and Premier brands. The group also expanded into property through HRC Properties Limited and Hamid Properties Limited. HRC's diversification extended into finance, including interests or associated companies such as One Bank, LankaBangla Finance PLC., Bangladesh General Insurance Company Limited, and National Housing Finance and Investments Limited. Manufacturing activities included HRC Lighting Limited and HRC Lamps Limited. In information technology, Information Services Network Limited operated as Bangla.net and is described in the supplied material as Bangladesh's first private Internet service provider. The group's history includes several major incidents. On 10 December 1998, two security guards were killed during a robbery at HRC Group's headquarters in Karwan Bazar, Dhaka. In July 2008, Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury was arrested by joint forces on allegations of money laundering and tax evasion. He was granted bail on 28 August of that year. In July 2020, Bangladesh Bank removed him from the chairmanship of One Bank after subsidiaries of HRC Group were reported to have defaulted on loans from various banks. Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury died on 15 July 2025. The supplied reference identifies his three sons—Halif Raees Chowdhury, Hameem Raees Chowdhury, and Haziq Raees Chowdhury—as the people who subsequently run HRC Group. Publicly available reference material does not establish a full current ownership chart, a complete list of operating subsidiaries, or consolidated financial results. The group's documented trajectory is consequently one of entrepreneurial expansion from port services into a broad Bangladeshi business portfolio, with its activities spanning industrial, service, media, agricultural, property, financial, and technology sectors.

• 2025

  Founder dies and sons assume group leadership

  [1]HRC Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury died on 15 July. The reference material states that his three sons subsequently began running HRC Group.

• 2020

  Removal from One Bank chairmanship

  [1]HRC Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Bangladesh Bank removed Chowdhury as chairperson of One Bank following reported loan defaults by HRC Group subsidiaries.

• 2008

  Arrest of the group chairperson

  [1]HRC Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury was arrested in July on allegations of money laundering and tax evasion and obtained bail on 28 August.

• 1998

  Headquarters robbery

  [1]HRC Groupen.wikipedia.org

  A robbery at the group's Karwan Bazar headquarters in Dhaka led to the deaths of two security guards on 10 December.

• 1991

  HRC Group established as a shipping agency

  [1]HRC Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury established the group on 14 March to provide shipping-agency services for Chittagong and Mongla ports.

A diversified Bangladeshi industrial group built from shipping and expanded across media, consumer and agricultural products, property, financial services, manufacturing, and information technology.

• Shipping and logistics · 1991

  Shipping and logistics services

  The group's original business area includes shipping-agency and freight activities connected with Bangladesh's Chittagong and Mongla ports. HRC Shipping Limited and HRC Freight Limited are identified as core companies in this area, alongside travel and transport-related businesses.

• English-language newspaper

  New Age

  New Age is an English-language daily newspaper listed among HRC Group's media interests. The available reference identifies the publication but does not provide sufficient information about its editorial structure, circulation, or current ownership arrangements.

• Bengali-language newspaper

  Jaijaidin

  Jaijaidin is a Bengali daily newspaper included in the group's media portfolio. The supplied material does not specify the precise dates or terms of the group's involvement.

• Tea and agriproducts

  Tea products

  HRC Products Limited is identified as producing tea under the Clevedon, Clone, and Premier brands. The wider tea operation includes Clevedon Tea Estate and Dildarpur Tea Estate through HRC Land Limited.

• Agriproducts

  Dairy and agro-products

  HRC Dairies Limited and HRC Agrocom represent the group's documented agricultural and dairy interests. No detailed product catalogue or distribution information is provided in the reference material.

• Internet and information services

  Bangla.net

  Information Services Network Limited operated under the Bangla.net name and is described in the reference material as Bangladesh's first private Internet service provider. The available source does not detail its present operating status.

• 2020

  Removal from One Bank leadership after reported loan defaults

  Bangladesh Bank removed Chowdhury as chairperson of One Bank after subsidiaries of HRC Group were reported to have defaulted on loans from various banks.

  Source

• 2008

  Arrest over money-laundering and tax-evasion allegations

  Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury, then chairperson of HRC Group, was arrested by joint forces in July 2008 on allegations of money laundering and tax evasion. He received bail on 28 August 2008.

  Source

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• 2020

  Regulatory removal from One Bank chairmanshipOther

  Background

  HRC Group subsidiaries were reported to have defaulted on loans from various banks.

  Action taken

  Bangladesh Bank removed Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury as chairperson of One Bank.

  Aftermath

  The action represented a significant regulatory and governance intervention affecting the group's financial interests.

  Source

• 1991

  Entered the shipping-agency businessStrategy

  Background

  The group was founded to serve the shipping needs of Chittagong and Mongla ports.

  Action taken

  Sayeed Hossain Chowdhury established HRC Group as a shipping agency on 14 March 1991.

  Aftermath

  The shipping business became the starting point for subsequent diversification into more than 20 subsidiaries and multiple industries.

  Source

1. 1HRC Groupen.wikipedia.org