According to authorities, the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) has closed three international branches in Bangladesh (Sylhet), Afghanistan (Jalalabad), and Uzbekistan (Tashkent) in recent months.
The bank’s management is closing international branches as part of a plan to reduce losses in these markets as a result of several operational issues in the host nations.
Last year, the bank’s management intended to reduce its international activities, which included up to 14 branches and subsidiaries. The bank evaluated its strategy and chose to focus on seven markets in the first phase, with the remainder of the closures to be decided later.
One additional branch in Turkmenistan (Ashgabat) is being closed, as are two subsidiaries in Tajikistan (Dushanbe) and Kazakhstan (Almaty).
The licenses of these outlets have been revoked by the host countries’ banking regulators, and the closure of branches is currently happening.
Over the previous few years, earnings from branches and subsidiaries have been steadily declining. Some branches are likewise losing money with no hope of recovering.
The US authorities fined the public sector bank $55.4 million (Rs. 9.8 billion) in February 2022 for failing to comply with anti-money laundering standards.
The branch has not yet been shuttered, but management has begun a rapid compliance program as a corrective action, with the bank’s board of directors overseeing the process.
Pakistan’s presence in the global banking industry has dwindled over the previous five years as local banks’ branches, subsidiaries, and affiliate firms have been swiftly shuttered, owing to losses and regulatory violations.
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