Govt defers NBP privatisation

The government, on Monday, deferred a decision on the privatisation of the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) due to a legal obstacle. This move contradicts an earlier commitment made to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to remove the special status of seven government-owned firms, including the NBP. Last month, Pakistan assured the IMF that it would withdraw the special status of these seven firms. However, the government cited the same special status on Monday as the reason for retaining the NBP in the public sector. The Finance Minister, Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb, presided over a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on State-Owned Enterprises (CCoSOEs). "The Cabinet Committee approved that the National Bank of Pakistan, being a part of the Sovereign Welfare Fund, is exempted from the SOE Act 2003 and hence not required to be categorised," said the Ministry of Finance.