The management of the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) has decided to shut down four of its branches in Bangladesh and Afghanistan, NBP officials informed while giving a briefing to the Standing Committee of Senate on Finance.
The move has come as part of the bank’s consolidation plan for overseas banking operations.
The officials told the Committee that the bank is closing its operations of three branches in different cities of Bangladesh, including Dhaka, Chittagong, and Sylhet, which have been running in losses for a long period.
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In this connection, the regulatory approvals were sought from the banking regulator of Pakistan and the host country, Bangladesh.
NBP operates four branches in Bangladesh. It opened its first branch in the capital city, Dhaka, back in 1994.
In Afghanistan, NBP will also shut down its branch in Jalalabad due to consistent losses in operations. The bank had started its operations there in 2004.
Reportedly, two private banks of Pakistan have also closed down their branches in the same city.
The management of NBP has decided to scale down its foreign operations, mainly through its branches. It is working to shut down at least seven branches this year, out of 21 total branches.
In the next phase, the NBP management will further review the operations of various branches in different countries and decide whether they will be shut down or remain functional.
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However, one branch of the Kyrgyz Republic will be shut down in the coming weeks, as the customers of the host country were directed to settle their accounts with the banks till February-end.
