Economic Analysts say New Kabul Bank needs necessary actions  

According to these economic analysts, New Kabul Bank faces a loss of millions of dollars annually and based on that, it would better to sell it or to terminate its operations.

This comes after Integrity Watch Afghanistan officials said on Saturday that in the past six years, the New Kabul Bank has lost $65 million USD.

Meanwhile, officials of the Ministry of Finance (MoF) have not commented on the money lost by the bank, but confirm that the bank operates at a loss.

“There are several options, sell the bank to the private sector, terminate it or make it a completely national or state run bank. But before choosing one of the options, we need to accurately assess all options,” economic analyst Haseebullah Mauhid said.

“We want a solution to the Kabul Bank issue – whether to privatize it or keep it as it is now,” MoF spokesman Ajmal Hamid Abul Rahimzai said.

Two years ago, the government requested the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to sell the bank to the private sector. But the bank wasn’t sold due to certain problems.

Kabul Bank, once the country’s largest financial institution, was badly shaken in 2010, when it faced bankruptcy, after almost $1 billion USD scam was uncovered.