SECP has done a good job to induct an administrator to manage day-to-day CSIBL affairs. This step is highly admirable, but one manhandling sale of CSIBL, managing day-to-day administrative work, pacifying creditors and depositors is, asking too much.
While when Mehran Bank, Prudential Bank, NDFC, Pan African Bank etc, were in the similar sort of situations, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), immediately got involved, and ensured merger/amalgamation took place rather quickly with NBP, Saudi Pak Bank, Metropolitan Bank. As a result all creditors and depositors of the aforesaid banks did not suffer.
What SECP should be doing, is to have dynamic, aggressive and result oriented team working round the clock with the mandate to find banks still interested in acquiring CSIBL, and the team should be given a timeframe of two weeks to complete the task of handing over CSIBL to the buying bank.
SECP should avail all assistance from SBP who could arrange merger with a financially robust bank, while the government of Pakistan should extend fiscal benefits to buying the bank, as CSIBL's current idea of asking lenders to hold billing of mark up tantamounts depriving lending banks' depositors from earning their rightful returns, ie, SECP's recent recipe to protect depositors of CSIBL at the cost of depositors of lender financial institutions.
SECP, along with SBP, should take all measures to get the CSIBL's investments be repaid to CSIBL from previous sponsors and their associated companies, without a day's delay. In fact efforts be made by SECP and SBP to get effective co-operation of previous CSIBL's sponsors.
Buyer of CSIBL be extended full help by SECP and SBP for obtaining fiscal relieves, as these measures shall create an impressive image of SECP and SBP in the eyes of creditors, depositors as well as overall local and foreign financial institutions.