The Cabinet Committee on Privatisation (CCoP) has authorised the Privatisation Division to open the financial bid for House Building Finance Corporation Limited (HBFCL), paving the way for a negotiated sale to Pakistan Mortgage Refinance Company Limited (PMRCL), the only bidder remaining in the process, Business Recorder reported, citing sources.
HBFCL was added to the privatisation programme in September 2019 and later endorsed by the Cabinet. A Financial Advisory Consortium comprising MCB Bank, Elixir Securities and EY Ford Rhodes was appointed to structure the transaction, which received CCoP approval in November 2020.
Expressions of interest were submitted by four entities: PMRCL, Pakistan Housing Finance Company Ltd (PHFCL), ICD–Islamic Development Bank (Saudi Arabia) and IFIC Bank (Bangladesh). ICD withdrew in 2022, while IFIC Bank failed to provide complete information. Only PMRCL and PHFCL advanced to pre-qualification, subject to the Fit and Proper Test.
While SECP cleared both entities, the State Bank of Pakistan ruled PHFCL non-compliant, leaving PMRCL as the sole eligible bidder. In July 2023, the CCoP approved proceeding with a single-bidder transaction.
A Negotiations Committee was later empowered to finalise the transaction. Buyer-side due diligence began in December 2023, followed by multiple rounds of comments and revisions to the Share Purchase Agreement (SPA) and Instructions to Interested Parties (ITIP). PMRCL confirmed its acceptance of the documents and expressed its intention to acquire a 51% stake in HBFCL in December 2024.
On November 7, 2025, the Financial Advisory Consortium presented its valuation analysis and recommended a reference price to the Privatisation Commission (PC) Board. After review, the PC Board endorsed the reference price for CCoP approval.
In its meeting on November 28, 2025, the CCoP cleared the Privatisation Division’s proposal, allowing the opening of the financial bid and moving the transaction into its final stage.
