NRB on Sunday allowed Manaslu Investment Private Limited, and Capital Investment and Securities Private Limited - the subsidiaries of NB Group - to sell 1.45 million units of shares and 1.46 million units of shares, respectively, to IFIC Bank. The selling price for each unit of the share has been fixed at Rs 260.[break]
NRB has also extended permission to Bangladesh-based Bank Asia Limited to sell its 2.77 million units of shares to IFIC Bank. The price of each unit of the share is fixed at Rs 100.
Nepal Bangladesh Bank on Wednesday formally informed Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse) about the decision.
Although the bank had sought permission for trading of promoter shares long time ago, it was not able to do so due to legal ambiguity.
As per the Bank and Financial Institutions Act, bank´s board director, chief executive, auditor and secretary and people directly overseeing bank´s financial matters cannot sell or purchase bank´s shares while assuming the post and until a year after resigning from these posts.
Although the law clearly barred promoters like Jeet Bahadur Shrestha and Laxmi Bahadur Shrestha, who were directly involved with NB Group and had previously held board directors position in the bank, it remained silent on sales of shares held by institutions investors to another institutional investor.
Due to this confusion, NRB sought the Ministry of Finance´s advice. The finance ministry later turned to Ministry of Law and Justice for expert opinion.
NRB extended the permission to trade shares held by institutional investors only after the law ministry gave a green signal setting a precedent in the banking sector.
Once the shares held in the names of Manaslu Investment and Capital Investment are sold, NB Group will formally make an exit from the bank.
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