Sindh High Court Removes All Roadblocks For JS Bank to Acquire BankIslami

Sindh High Court (SHC) has dismissed the applications against JS Bank’s (PSX: JSBL) acquisition of majority shares and control of BankIslami Pakistan Limited (PSX: BIPL), the Bank informed Pakistan Stock Exchange on Tuesday. With reference to past disclosures, JSBL said the SHC has dismissed the applications filed against it, thereby clearing all perceived roadblocks against the Bank with respect to the takeover of BIPL. In lieu of the aforesaid development, Manager to the Offer Next Capital Limited has submitted a Public Announcement of Offer on behalf of JSBL on June 27, 2023, to acquire 24.88 percent shares (i.e. 275,891,286 shares) of BIPL. The Public Announcement of Intention was made by the Acquirer on November 17, 2022. Thereafter, Next Capital Limited, on behalf of the Acquirer, intimated an extension in time for making the public offer vide its announcement dated May 15, 2023, the Manager to the Offer said in a separate filing to PSX. “All the documents required under Schedule VIII of the Regulations are also being couriered to the SECP along with a hard copy of this PAO today,” the manager further stated. It is pertinent to mention here that JS Bank on March 6 announced its decision to acquire shares in BankIslami through a shares swap agreement with JS Global Limited and JS Investments Limited. However, later on, the bank announced the offering of cash consideration to the minority shareholders of BIPL. BankIslami Pakistan Limited is a prominent Islamic bank in Pakistan that has been serving customers for many years. The potential takeover of the bank by JS Group has piqued the interest and speculation of the business community and investors. In this case, interested parties filed applications against the transaction and sought an injunction from SHC to prevent the bank from proceeding with the acquisition. Today, SHC has dismissed all applications against JSBL’s acquisition of BIPL shares, and the Bank will now proceed with the purchase on schedule.