November 07, 2018 (MLN): The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) has approved M/s. Alipay (Hong Kong) Holding Limited's acquisition of 45% shareholding in M/s. Telenor Microfinance Bank Limited, paving the way for the world's largest mobile payment platform's entry into Pakistan.
According to the press release, since January 2018, the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) has approved 66 mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures in sectors including Power Generation, Automotive, Information Technology, Oil & Gas, and Food.
As per the bulletin, some of the major transactions include the acquisition of Daraz.com by Alibaba Singapore Holding, the acquisition of OMV (Pakistan) Exploration GMBH by Dragon Prime Hong Kong Limited, the Joint Venture between Riaz Bottlers Private Limited and Lotte Chilsung Beverages Co Limited.
Furthermore, the acquisition of shareholding in Total PARCO Marketing Limited by Pak-Arab Refinery Limited, and the acquisition of Marshall Gas Private Limited's Liquefied Petroleum Gas plant by Hascol Petroleum Limited has been approved.
Alipay is a part of the Alibaba Group, a Chinese multinational conglomerate specializing in e-commerce, retail, Internet, AI and technology, founded in 2004 by Jack Ma.
Telenor Microfinance Bank is Pakistan's first scheduled microfinance bank and provides microfinance and related financial services.
