Political Motivations: The Nationalization of the Pakistani Banking Sector

Abstract

The sixth most populated country in the world, Pakistan has faced political instability since her independence. The Pakistani banking sector, which had experienced rapid growth, faced an unexpected move in 1974 when through a parliamentary act; the Government of Pakistan nationalized the industry and seized control of all assets. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the events leading to the nationalization and the impact of the decision on the banking sector in Pakistan. The findings of the paper reveal that the decision to take control of the banking sector was a politically motivated one which failed to achieve the objectives that were set out during the nationalization.

Keywords: nationalization, privatization, Pakistan, banking

JEL Classification: E58, F23, G21,