The Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh

The Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh (ICMAB) is the national professional institution devoted to cost and management accounting in Bangladesh. Its work combines professional education, examination and qualification development, research, promotion of management accounting, and oversight of the profession. Unlike a commercial accounting firm or a consumer-facing financial brand, ICMAB functions as a professional and institutional body serving students, qualified cost and management accountants, employers, public institutions, and the wider accounting community. The institute was re-established in 1972 under the name Bangladesh Institute of Industrial Accountants. Its legal identity was subsequently changed by the Government of Bangladesh through the Cost and Management Accountants Ordinance 1977, identified in the reference material as Ordinance No. LIII of 1977. That change established the name by which the institution is known today: The Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh. The institute is described as an autonomous professional body operating under the Ministry of Commerce. ICMAB’s core professional role is centered on cost and management accounting. This field supports internal decision-making through cost measurement, budgeting, performance analysis, management information, pricing analysis, resource allocation, and financial control. The institute therefore serves functions that extend beyond statutory financial reporting. Its members contribute to accounting and finance roles in businesses and other organizations, and the professional designations associated with its membership include ACMA and FCMA. Education and professional qualification are central to ICMAB’s identity. The institute provides a route into the cost and management accounting profession and supports the development of students and qualified practitioners. It also undertakes research and promotes the use of management accounting knowledge in Bangladesh. In parallel, it has a regulatory and representational role, helping to develop standards and professional expectations for cost and management accountants. ICMAB is connected to international accounting networks and organizations. The listed relationships include membership or association with the International Federation of Accountants, the Confederation of Asia Pacific Accountants, and the South Asian Federation of Accountants. The reference material also identifies a relationship with the International Accounting Standards Board. ICMAB qualifications or membership have been recognized for exemptions or related academic and professional pathways by a range of bodies, including CIMA in the United Kingdom, ACCA in the United Kingdom, the Institute of Management Accountants in the United States, CMA Canada, CGA-Canada, the Institute of Certified Financial Consultants, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Institute of Public Accountants in Australia, and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh. The institute’s membership has an international dimension: the reference material states that approximately 30 percent of members live and work outside Bangladesh. This suggests that, while ICMAB is primarily a Bangladesh-based professional institution, its qualification and member community have reach beyond the country. No reliable information in the supplied materials establishes a commercial ownership structure, stock-market listing, named current executives, detailed financial data, or a specific headquarters address.

ICMAB’s institutional history is rooted in the development of Bangladesh’s post-independence accounting profession. In 1972, the organization was re-established as the Bangladesh Institute of Industrial Accountants. The re-establishment placed emphasis on industrial and cost accounting capabilities at a time when Bangladesh was developing its own public and professional institutions. The institution’s present identity dates from 1977. Through the Cost and Management Accountants Ordinance 1977, identified as Ordinance No. LIII of 1977 in the supplied reference material, the government renamed the organization the Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh. The ordinance-based name formalized its role as the country’s dedicated professional institution for cost and management accounting. ICMAB operates as an autonomous professional body under the Ministry of Commerce. Its functions extend across education, research, professional development, regulation, and promotion of the cost and management accounting profession. The institute’s members are known as cost and management accountants and use the designatory titles ACMA and FCMA. They work across accounting, finance, management information, costing, planning, and related organizational functions. The institute’s professional role is broader than providing instruction. It supports the formation of a qualified practitioner community and contributes to the institutional development of management accounting in Bangladesh. Cost and management accounting is concerned with producing information for internal management, including cost control, budgeting, operational analysis, performance evaluation, and decision support. ICMAB’s educational and professional activities are consequently linked to the needs of businesses and other organizations that require structured financial and operational information. ICMAB has also developed an international profile through participation in global and regional accounting networks. The supplied material lists the International Federation of Accountants, the Confederation of Asia Pacific Accountants, the South Asian Federation of Accountants, and the International Accounting Standards Board among its international associations or relationships. Its qualification or membership has additionally been recognized for exemptions or related purposes by professional bodies in the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia, and Bangladesh. These include CIMA, ACCA, the Institute of Management Accountants, CMA Canada, CGA-Canada, the Institute of Certified Financial Consultants, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Institute of Public Accountants, and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh. The reference material states that 30 percent of ICMAB members live and work outside Bangladesh. This international membership presence gives the institute a diaspora and cross-border dimension while retaining Bangladesh as its principal national market. The available material does not provide a detailed chronology of examination reforms, leadership changes, campuses, membership totals, financial performance, or recent strategic initiatives. Those areas therefore remain undocumented in this dossier.

1. 1977Renamed under the Cost and Management Accountants Ordinance

   The Government of Bangladesh renamed the organization the Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh through the Cost and Management Accountants Ordinance 1977.

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2. 1972Re-established as Bangladesh Institute of Industrial Accountants

   The institution was re-established under the name Bangladesh Institute of Industrial Accountants, providing an institutional foundation for the development of industrial and cost accounting in Bangladesh.

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A national, autonomous professional accounting institute focused on cost and management accounting education, qualification, research, professional regulation, and international recognition in Bangladesh.

• ICMAB professional qualificationProfessional education and certification

  ICMAB’s principal professional offering is its cost and management accounting qualification pathway. It is intended to prepare candidates for work involving costing, management information, budgeting, analysis, financial control, and internal decision support. The supplied material does not specify the current syllabus structure, examination stages, duration, or admission requirements.

• ACMA and FCMA designationsProfessional membership designations

  Qualified ICMAB members use the designatory titles ACMA and FCMA. These designations represent professional membership levels or statuses within the institute’s cost and management accounting community. The available reference does not provide the detailed criteria distinguishing the two designations.

• Accounting research and professional developmentResearch and continuing professional development

  ICMAB is engaged in accounting education and research and promotes the cost and management accounting profession in Bangladesh. These activities support practitioners and organizations by encouraging the application of management accounting concepts to planning, operational control, performance measurement, and business decision-making.

1. Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh
2. Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh official website