Hundreds of lenders have gathered outside the Evaly office in Dhaka’s Dhanmondi following the transfer of the e-commerce platform’s responsibility to the family of Mohammad Rassel, former managing director of the company.

Rassel’s wife Shamima Nasrin, a co-founder and former chairman of Evaly, will rejoin the firm’s board as its director on Thursday, said Mahbub Kabir Milon, managing director of the court-appointed board.

Milon, also a former additional secretary of the firm, arrived at the Evaly office at 10 am, but Shamima was not there. She is expected to arrive at the office in the afternoon.

Hundreds of lenders gather outside Evaly office in Dhaka

The lenders started to gather outside the office in the morning. Leaders of Evaly Merchant and Customers Coordination Committee have expressed their gratitude to the court for resuming Evaly’s operation. Instead of getting their money back, they demanded Rassel’s release from prison.

“We are hopeful as the court allowed Rassel’s family to rejoin the board. The e-commerce firm will be able to refund its customers gradually if the business goes well,” said Sakib Hasan, one of the conveners of the Evaly Merchant and Customers Coordination Committee.

“We are not appointed to retrieve customers’ money. We had been asked to investigate the issues behind the crisis and how the company can be turned around. We have submitted a final report on our findings to the court. We believe Evaly will bounce back if it can secure necessary investments,” Milon said.

Meanwhile, retired Justice Shamsuddin Chowdhury Manik, chief of the court-appointed Evaly board, expressed his disappointment with the e-commerce firm.

“Rassel started the company to embezzle funds from its customers. He cheated customers at every stage of the business. I do not think the customers will be refunded under his family’s direction.”