Tameer Bank is regarded as the country’s first and largest microfinance bank. The bank set operational back in 2005 is now 100% owned by one of the largest telecos of Pakistan, Telenor.
Prior to that, 51 per cent of shares of the bank were owned by the Norwegian telecommunication company Telenor, and now they have acquired the entire Tameer Bank.
As mentioned above Tameer bank is the largest microfinace bank of the country. Back in 2009, Tameer Bank teamed up with Telenor to unveil their mutual product Easy Paisa, which turned out to be game changer in payment regarding methods in Pakistan.
According to the sources, before the final acquisition by Telenor, 49 percent of the sharers where held by the CEO of the Bank Nadeem Hussain and others. Whereas, Telenor was even having 51% of the total share of the Tameer Bank.
“With the collaboration between Tameer and Telenor, Easypaisa has become a global example of innovation in bringing financial inclusion through mobile. We acknowledge this acquisition as a testament of our growth in Pakistan and the reward affiliated to it – empower societies.” said Tine Wollebekk, Head of Financial Services, Telenor Group. “This acquisition gives us an even stronger platform to provide wide scale financial services to the unbanked population in the country.”
“Tameer has fundamentally changed the face of Financial Inclusion in Pakistan. The team has built an effective model that will serve as a global benchmark for years to come. I have immense pride in what we have been able to achieve so far, and am confident that Tameer will continue to grow successfully,” said Nadeem Hussain.
Michael Foley, Chairman Board of Directors Tameer Microfinance Bank and CEO Telenor Pakistan said, “Tameer’s team is making a contribution to the nation and millions of Pakistanis owe their access to financial services, and the empowerment that comes with it.”
