Japan's SoftBank has agreed to acquire 20 per cent stake in bKash, one of the largest mobile banking operators in Bangladesh.
Brac Bank, the majority shareholder of bKash, took the decision at its board meeting on Wednesday.
According to a BRAC Bank statement, the board of directors of BRAC Bank Limited, the majority shareholder of bKash Limited in its 307th meeting on Wednesday has approved the execution of a share purchase and subscription agreement amongst bKash and its existing shareholders.
The existing shareholders included BRAC Bank, Money in Motion LLC, International Finance Corporation, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Alipay Singapore E-Commerce Private Limited and Board of Trustees of bKash Employee Share Option Plan Trust, and the proposed investor, SVF II BEAM (DE) LLC (SoftBank), it also said.
In accordance with the terms and conditions of the agreement, both primary and secondary investments will be made by SoftBank in bKash, whereby SoftBank will acquire 20 per cent share (on a fully diluted basis) of bKash, it said.
There will be no changes to the number of shares held by BRAC Bank in bKash and, on completion of the transaction, BRAC Bank will continue to remain the majority voting shareholder of bKash, it further said.
It also said that the agreement is subject to the relevant regulatory formalities in compliance with the applicable laws of Bangladesh.
