ISLAMABAD: The federal government of Pakistan on Wednesday decided to sell First Woman Bank Limited to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) government.
The 82% shares will be sold on the government-to-government level after getting a green signal from the UAE government.
After the sale, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) will issue a new license to First Women Bank. The sale price and deal finalization will be carried out by the 8-member cabinet committee formed by the federal government.
Moreover, the meeting of the cabinet committee has been summoned today, where important decisions are likely to be approved.
The primary responsibility of the bank will be providing financial help to women. The privatization of the First Women Bank Limited was initiated in 2015.
Pakistan Sells Historic Building
In 2023, Pakistan sold a historic building owned by its embassy in Washington, which had been vacant since 2003.
The property classification of the building was recently downgraded by the authorities — a move that inevitably increased taxes on its assessed value, according to media reports.
The local authorities had changed the old and crumbling building’s class status.
The building, which used to be a chancery in the past, was put up for auction late last year; the highest bidder at that time had offered 6.8 million dollars for the property.
