The Board of Directors of Habib Bank Limited, one of the country’s largest commercial banks, has approved an equity investment of Rs6 billion (~$21.5 million) in its subsidiary, HBL Microfinance Bank Limited (HBL MfB).

HBL announced the development in its notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Tuesday.

“We hereby convey that the Board of Directors of Habib Bank Limited has approved an equity investment of up to Rs6 billion in its subsidiary namely HBL Microfinance Bank Limited, in compliance with all regulatory requirements and the approval of the shareholders of the bank,” read the notice.

Formerly the First MicroFinanceBank Ltd, HBL Microfinance Bank Ltd is the largest microfinance bank of Pakistan. HBL MfB operates over 200 locations all over Pakistan.

The bank was established in 2002 as a nation-wide microfinance bank, licensed by the State Bank of Pakistan. HBL MfB was created through a structured transformation of the credit and savings section of the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP), an integrated development programme to pioneer the microfinance sector in the country since 1982 in Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral.

On the financial front, HBL declared a consolidated profit before tax of Rs30.1 billion for the quarter ended March 31, 2024, 40% higher than in the same period of the previous year.

Profit after tax has increased from Rs13.3 billion in the first quarter of 2023 to Rs15 billion.

Earnings Per Share (EPS) for Q1’24 was Rs10.37, compared to Rs9.00 in Q1’23. Along with the results, HBL declared an interim cash dividend of Rs4 per share (i.e 40%) for the quarter.