Kathmandu, July 5
Two big commercial banks with branches all over Nepal have signed a memorandum of understanding to enter into a merger, a week after the Nepal Rastra Bank urged banks to ‘look for partners’.
Janta Bank and Global IME Bank signed the initial agreement on Friday adhering to a directive by Governor Chiranjibi Nepal on June 27. During a meeting with the CEOs and Board Presidents of various banks, Governor Nepal directed the bankers to look for ‘merger partners’ ahead of the Monetary Policy Speech.
“We decided to enter into the merger looking at the Rastra Bank’s plans and the need of time,” said Janta Bank CEO Parsuram Kunwar. The MoU was signed by Global IME chair Chandra Dhakal and Janta Bank chair Keshav Raymajhi. The two banks are yet to decide the modality of the merger. However, both sides have agreed to name Kunwar as the CEO and Global IME’s acting CEO Mahesh Dhakal as his deputy. The new bank will retain the name ‘Global IME’.
