Dhaka, April 9 -- Bangladesh Bank Governor Ahsan H Mansur has announced that underperforming Islamic Shariah-based banks will be merged with stronger institutions that have functional boards and no governing issues.

Speaking at the 10th Annual Banking Conference on Wednesday, Mansur said the bigger Islamic banks had been "reshaped" but a bunch of smaller banks were still grappling with issues.

"The banks plagued with problems will be merged. We don't have a proper regulatory framework for Islamic banks. We're looking at global models on how Islamic banks operate," he said.

Mansur said, "We're reviewing every weak bank for a merger. If a bank's board is not functioning, the central bank has the right to intervene on behalf of depositors...