The Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) has engaged the Bangladeshi auditing firm Howladar Yunus & Co. to perform an extensive assessment of loan standards across 10 of Nepal’s major commercial banks.
After a rigorous selection process, Howladar Yunus & Co. stood out as the only firm fulfilling the technical requirements among six contenders. The central bank finalized a contract valued at Rs 6.25 million with the firm once it reviewed their financial proposal, which had been pending due to litigations.
The selection adhered to Sub-Section 2 of Section 38 of the Public Procurement Act, 2063. A competing bidder, S. Subedi & Associates—part of a consortium with Mehra JKSS SSBDI—had earlier contested the process by submitting a writ petition to the Supreme Court, resulting in a brief suspension of proceedings.
Nevertheless, on June 23, a joint bench of Justices Dr Manoj Kumar Sharma and Nripadhwoj Niraula lifted the temporary injunction, allowing NRB to proceed with the appointment. With the legal obstacle removed, the central bank can now advance with the long-anticipated evaluation intended to assess the financial status and credit practices of significant entities in Nepal’s banking industry.
