Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun

Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun, popularly known as Ashik Chowdhury, is a Bangladeshi economist, banker, and chartered financial analyst who serves as the Executive Chairman of the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) and the Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority (BEZA).

**Dual Leadership Role**

Chowdhury holds a unique dual mandate overseeing both investment promotion and economic zone development:

- 🏛️ **Executive Chairman of BIDA** (since 1 November 2024) — The primary investment promotion agency of Bangladesh

- 🏭 **Executive Chairman of BEZA** (since 12 September 2024) — Authority responsible for developing and managing Special Economic Zones

This combined role gives him comprehensive authority over Bangladesh's investment landscape — from attracting FDI to developing the infrastructure (economic zones) needed to host that investment.

**Professional Background**

Chowdhury is a seasoned professional banker with over 20 years of experience in Credit Risk Management, corporate banking, and financial analysis. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with expertise in investment analysis and portfolio management.

**Investment Promotion Priorities**

As BIDA Chairman, Chowdhury has:

- 📊 Called for ending protectionism and fixing execution gaps to sustain investment growth

- ⚡ Identified energy crisis as the top barrier to investment in Bangladesh

- 💰 Overseen the conversion of over 15% of BIDA's investment pipeline into active projects ($400M of $1.5B pipeline converted)

- 📋 Launched an investment database survey to support investment-friendly policymaking

- 🌍 Engaged with foreign investors to position Bangladesh as an attractive FDI destination

**Education**

Chowdhury is an alumnus of the Institute of Business Administration (IBA), University of Dhaka, and the London Business School — two of the most prestigious business education institutions.

**Data sources**: Wikipedia, BIDA official website, The Business Standard, Dhaka Tribune. Updated July 2026.