The management of MCB Bank has decided not to pursue its interest in the acquisition of a major shareholding either in Telenor Microfinance Bank or its branchless banking operation, Easypaisa, official sources told ProPakistani.
The failure of negotiation on the deal price between the management of the two banks is rumored to be the reason. The settlement of the liabilities of the Telenor Microfinance Bank has also been speculated to be an issue.
The Norwegian telecom giant, Telenor Group, announced to sell its 55 percent stake in Telenor Microfinance Bank in November 2021.
MCB Bank was the first to show its interest in the acquisition of the bank’s major shares. The management had earlier carried out the exercise of due diligence of the Telenor Microfinance Bank to evaluate the potential of the deal with the permission of the banking regulator.
Besides MCB Bank, two more banks — United Bank Limited and Askari Bank Limited — approached the management of Telenor Microfinance Bank, one after another, for their interest in the acquisition of shares. These banks were also permitted for conducting due diligence on the microfinance bank. However, negotiations between the management are underway on various issues.
MCB Bank was considered a strong contender for this deal due to its growth potential in the microfinance sector. The bank previously acquired and merged with NIB Bank in 2017 and demerged its operation of Islamic banking business to set up a separate subsidiary of MCB Islamic Bank.
The bank had also shown interest in acquiring SMEs Bank, but the plan was also revoked later.
