The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Friday announced filing a reference against 13 accused over allegations of illegal investment and restructuring of investment by National Insurance Company Ltd (NICL).

The NAB reference, a copy of which is available with Dawn, states that the reference is in connection with a board meeting of the NICL in 2009 which had decided to invest in First Dawood Investment Bank Ltd (FDIBL).

"The said investment was made by the accused persons in violation of policy and with the malafide intention of illegally favouring FDIBL by boosting their financial health," it said, adding that the investment caused a loss to the national exchequer to the tune of Rs 64.057 million.

It said that the NAB initiated an investigation into the matter on Supreme Court's orders following a complaint by Transparency International.

"The investigation revealed that NICL management on November 24, 2008, made an irregular investment of Rs100m as Certificate of Investment (COI) with FDIBL on the offer to return at the rate of 18.5 per cent per annum for a period of six months," NAB said.

It alleged that the investment was made in violation of a notification by Finance Division and that the FDIBL failed to return the principal amount on the date of maturity.

NAB implicated 11 NICL officials, including its then chief executive officer Abid Javed Akbar, and two FDIBL officials — a director and the CEO.