NBP revamp keeps finance veto

The federal government has approved a draft law to overhaul National Bank of Pakistan’s governance, while preserving a Finance Division role in choosing its president, The Express Tribune reported. The Cabinet Committee on Legislative Cases cleared the NBP Amendment Act, 2026, which Parliament must pass to fulfil an IMF programme condition. Under the proposal, the president would be selected by the government in consultation with the State Bank of Pakistan from three candidates backed by a three-fourths majority of NBP’s central board, including a required affirmative vote from the Finance Division’s ex-officio director.

The draft would place NBP under the NBP Act, the State-Owned Enterprises Act and, when applicable, the Pakistan Sovereign Wealth Fund Act, while making the SOE Act prevail in case of conflict. It envisages a board with a majority of independent directors, but allows the government to change its size within a range of six to nine members. Existing local and regional management bodies would be dissolved when the new law takes effect, with members receiving no compensation for losing their positions.