JP Morgan sees huge investment potential: Investors’ moot ends
LAHORE, May 31: SECP Chairman Razi ur Rehman has said that the government’s policy is to welcome and facilitate foreign investors to work in Pakistan. Addressing the 2-day meeting of foreign investors organised by JP Morgan in Lahore on Thursday he praised the efforts of JP Morgan and said that it was a very good sign that its management decided to come back to Pakistan and started its operation.
The SECP chairman said that the government was working on long-term reforms so that the market may work in an orderly and transparent manner. “The market should move in more equitable regime and reforms so far introduced have proved very successful,” he added.
According to a press release, sixteen leading foreign private equity investors were invited to Pakistan by JP Morgan to hold one to one meetings with leading listed companies. They concluded their meetings on Thursday.
JP Morgan Country Manager Reza Rahim said that on the first day the visiting foreign private equity investors had meetings with Bank of Punjab, FFC, Kapco, Lucky Cement, MCB Bank, OGDCL, PSO, TRG and WorldCall. On the second day they had fruitful meetings with Adamjee Insurance, DG Khan Cement, Engro Chemical Pakistan, Hub Power, ICI Pakistan, Indus Motor, Pace Pakistan, Standard Chartered Bank and Orascom Pakistan.
Reza said that the cash equity broking operations started earlier this year was a significant development for JP Morgan’s Pakistan business, which is the only foreign firm with a corporate seat at the Karachi Stock Exchange.
Mr Randolf Cinton, JP Morgan managing director and head of Cash Equities in Asia, excluding Japan, observed that Pakistan had tremendous potential as its economy is growing at a remarkable pace. “We are facilitating our international equity clients by helping them take a closer look at leading Pakistani companies and an opportunity to invest in the macro-economic turnaround,” he added.
Earlier on Wednesday addressing the visiting investors State Bank Governor Dr Shamshad Akhtar said that the Pakistan banking sector had shown remarkable and unprecedented growth. Classified as Pakistan and the region’s best performing sector its assets have risen to over $60 billion, profitability is exceptional and all time high. Non-performing loans are at all time low, assets are in private hands and almost 47 per cent have foreign shareholders, she added.
She further said that Pakistan had huge potential for foreign investment as presently only three per cent of the population was borrowing from banks and only 30 per cent of adults had bank accounts.
