Bank Alfalah completes sale of Afghan operations to Ghazanfar Bank

Bank Alfalah Limited has completed the sale of its Afghanistan banking operations to Ghazanfar Bank, leaving a market it entered in 2005, the lender said in a notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Friday.

The transaction closed on 5 November 2026, according to the filing, after the State Bank of Pakistan and Da Afghanistan Bank, Afghanistan's central bank, granted their approvals and the other conditions in the agreement were met.

Bank Alfalah's branches in Kabul and Herat, together with the related assets and liabilities, have been transferred to Ghazanfar Bank. The Pakistani bank said it has ceased banking operations in Afghanistan and will complete the closure of its Afghan branches under the applicable regulatory requirements.

The notice said the transaction "stands completed on 5th November 2026".

Bank Alfalah opened its first Afghan branch in Kabul in 2005 and later expanded to Herat, offering conventional and Islamic banking in the country.

The exit followed a process that began in December 2025, when Bank Alfalah's board of directors accepted a non-binding offer from Ghazanfar Bank for the potential purchase of the Afghan operations. That offer was conditional on Ghazanfar Bank completing due diligence and on approvals from regulators in both countries.

In January 2026, the State Bank of Pakistan and the Central Bank of Afghanistan gave in-principle approvals allowing Ghazanfar Bank to begin due diligence on Bank Alfalah's Afghanistan business, which let the buyer start examining the branch network's accounts.

The notice did not give a value for the transaction.