Submit your Article

Jagdish Dahal is a member of the Supreme Court Bar and has been practicing corporate law for around three decades. He has a wide experience in insurance, tax, banking, labor and corporate laws. Besides, he has also worked as a legal consultant in various projects of UNDP, USAID, ADB, EU and commercial banks. ApEx talked to Dahal regarding Nepal’s economic and legal situation from a corporate lawyer’s eye. How do you see our banking sector? Nepal has a good banking human resource. Yet, there are a few issues with them. Nepali banks are town-centered, and the state has also not been able to make banks village-centered. Also, banks enjoyed investment in quick profit-oriented ventures like trade, automobiles, real estate, housing, hydro, tourism and other service sectors rather than in production-oriented firms. The states meanwhile failed to regulate these things. The same investors started to invest in both banks and trades which had many conflicts of interest. Due to a lack of direction in political leadership, these problems arose which ultimately impacted the banking sector and national economy. However, their regulator, Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), has played a good role in improving the Nepali banking sector. Maybe this is because the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) regularly suggests and supervises NRB’s work. What is the condition of insurance companies? The history of the insurance business is not too old. It was initially started to help and support banks. And till today, things seem the same. Banks and insurance companies have a cordial relation and if banking business gets down, the insurance companies also see a plunge in businesses. Over the time, the insurance business has been expanded and there are over 40 life and general insurance companies in Nepal. But their condition is not exciting. The indexes of the economy show that we are already in a crisis. At this point, I feel that this is the time to downsize banks and insurance companies. And the government should formulate plans to battle the recession so that everyone can sustain the period. Does Nepal have good laws? Not a single law or plans and policies in Nepal has been made by the experts. They are made by bureaucrats. What bureaucrats do is make the laws in their favor so that it will be easy for them to work. No governmental programs and packages help general people because they are not meant for the public, but the bureaucrats. Moreover, the laws in Nepal are copied and translated from the foreign countries. Many of them have no Nepali taste. For instance, the Income Tax Act is so vast and undefined that the act itself hinders revenue generation. For a better revenue collection and involvement of every Nepali to strengthen national treasure, laws, acts and provisions should attract taxpayers. The legislature should work to incorporate public demands in the laws. Similarly, there are also many issues with banking, insurance, security market and corporate acts. Not only with their laws, but many of them need a complete restructuring of the organization. They too need experts in the leadership of the organization. How do you see the labor situation in Nepal? The labor situation is terrible here. Nepal has many daily wage workers, and it is difficult for them to sustain with the wages they get. So, the laborers are not in a good situation in Nepal. There are many issues of overwork and less salary. The state must conduct a study on how much money a person needs to sustain for a month comfortably and the minimum wage cap should be strictly maintained. It must be regulated, and such studies should be conducted regularly as inflation plays a major role in it. The minimum wage cap should be updated regularly. The government should also maintain an updated list of its people, how many of them are employed, how many are unemployed and all. And then, the government should provide them with employment and generate income for the expenses of non-working age groups too. What types of corporate issues are in larger numbers in the court? Banking offenses, issues between banks and loan receivers, revenue issues and trade disputes are the major lawsuits. Lately, these issues have increased because the poor economic situation has vacuumed the gap between banks and customers. There have been issues of loans as the entrepreneurs have not been able to pay back due to lack of business. How do you rate the banking and financial literacy of Nepalis? Financial literacy has grown in Nepal. The Constitution of Nepal 2015 compelled the banks and financial institutions to open its branches in each local government. Hence banks were spread to rural areas of Nepal. The banks have helped people know the importance of saving and have taught how to deposit and withdraw money. However, the banks are yet to help people start their own venture. The banks should help other businesses to flourish so that there will be employment opportunities in every place. It will ultimately help every sector of Nepal. What are your suggestions for all these issues? If the political leadership realizes their responsibility toward the nation, we have issues that could be fixed. But we have not seen the government and concerned parties in a rush even if we are in crisis. So, my suggestion and solution are that the leadership should correct itself and help businesses with better entrepreneurial environments. Experts should be brought to power, and they should be allowed to make plans to fight the crisis. We should also be able to learn from the good deeds of our neighboring countries—the two major economies in the world. Bureaucracy has a similar problem. They have a problem of superiority complex. They believe that their abilities or accomplishments are somehow dramatically better than others and without them, this country would not have existed. They too need a serious correction on their work and behavior.

The government has announced a public holiday in Kathmandu Valley on Thursday  on the occasion of Bhoto Jatra of Rato Machhindranath. Issuing a notice on Wednesday, the Home Ministry said that the government has declared a public holiday in Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur to celebrate the festival tomorrow. Bhoto Jatra is a part of the Rato Machhendranath chariot festival that concludes after the chariot of the deity is pulled up to Jawalakhel in Lalitpur. It is an annual cultural cum religious ritual of displaying the black jewel-studded bhoto (vest) believed to be of the then Nagraj, the serpent king.      

Rastriya Swatantra Party (RRP) Chairman Rabi Lamichhane said that a parliamentary special committee should be formed to investigate the fake Bhutanese refugee scam. During a Parliament meeting held on Wednesday, Lamichhane expressed his doubt that the ongoing investigation into Bhutanese refugee case would satisfy the public. "The Parliament should form a special probe committee to deal with the issue," he said, adding, “Corruption has been the concern of the party since its establishment.” "We doubt the intentions of frequent sittings among three political parties since the scam came to light. Now, many political parties have been alleged of having a role in the scam,” he said. “The role of state bodies including those responsible for preventing corruption is questionable. Under all these circumstances, we are not convinced that the ongoing investigation into the scam would be concluded impartially. So, it is a must to handle the case by a specific parliamentary committee," Lamichhane added.  

President Ram Chandra Paudel administered the oath of office and secrecy to newly appointed minister Birendra Prasad Mahato amidst a special ceremony at Sheetal Niwas on Wednesday. The Head-of-the-State administered the oath of office and secrecy in accordance with Article 80 of the Constitution of Nepal. On the occasion, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal administered the oath of office and secrecy to newly appointed Minister of State Pramila Kumari in accordance with Article 80 of the Constitution of Nepal. Mahato was appointed the Minister for Forest and Environment and Pramila was appointed the Minister of State for Education, Science and Technology on Tuesday. With this, a 25-member Council of Ministers has come to a complete shape.  

The price of gold has increased by Rs 600 per tola in the domestic market on Wednesday. According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the precious yellow metal is being traded at Rs 109, 800 per tola today. The gold was traded at Rs 109, 200 per tola on Tuesday. Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 109, 300 per tola. It was traded at Rs 108, 700 per tola. Similarly, the silver is being traded at Rs 1,360 per tola today.

After a gap of 12 years, the Securities Board of Nepal (Sebon) has again started issuing stock brokerage licenses. A board meeting of the securities market regulator on Monday decided to issue stock brokerage licenses to seven firms out of 43 companies that have received the letters of intent (LoIs). According to Sebon, the seven firms have been granted licenses in the first phase. Those permitted to operate brokerage services are Bhole Ganesh Securities, Capital Max Securities, Himalayan Brokerage Company, Sun Securities, Mio Securities, Share Pro Securities, and Property Wizard Limited. The last time Sebon issued stock brokerage licenses was in 2011 when the regulator granted permission to 27 firms. Sebon Spokesperson Mukti Shrestha said that the board will gradually grant licenses to the firms who've received the LoIs. At present, there are 50 brokerage companies operating in Nepal including a stock dealer company. On 18 Sept 2022, Sebon issued a public notice inviting interested firms to apply for brokerage licenses. After the Supreme Court's interlocutory interim order in the first week of November, Sebon stopped the process of issuing new licenses to new stock exchanges, commodity exchanges, and stock brokerage firms. The issuance of licenses to new brokerage firms got pace after the Supreme Court in the second week of April canceled a writ petition. Subsequently, Sebon issued LoIs to 43 firms. While issuing the LoIs, Sebon had said that firms must prepare necessary infrastructures such as office and software within six months. The board has issued LoI to subsidiary companies of seven banks - Nabil Bank, the then Mega Bank, Citizens Bank, Kumari Bank, NMB Bank, Rastriya Banijya Bank, and Sanima Bank to conduct stock brokerage transactions. However, the companies are yet to receive licenses. While the issuance of stock brokerage licenses has moved ahead, the licensing process of the new stock exchange has been halted for now, following instructions from Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal. The process has been stalled after Prime Minister Dahal directed officials not to proceed with the process of granting a license to the new stock exchange for the time being. This comes amid allegations from various quarters that the government was trying to grant the license for the new stock exchange to benefit certain individuals and business groups. Three companies have applied for the new stock exchange, namely the Himalayan Stock Exchange, National Stock Exchange, and Annapurna Stock Exchange. The top corporate groups of the country are in a race to get the license to operate a new stock exchange. The Sebon had formed an evaluation committee for the issuance of licenses for a new stock exchange and commodities exchanges led by Phanindra Gautam, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Law, Justice, and Parliamentary Affairs. The committee had started evaluating the proposals of three companies when the Prime Minister directed to halt the process.  

Newly appointed Minister Birendra Prasad Mahato and Minister of State Pramila Kumari are scheduled to take the oath of office and secrecy on Wednesday. Mahato and Pramila are to be inducted in the Cabinet on behalf of the Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP). According to the JSP sources, the newly appointed ministers are taking oath of office at a program to be held at the President's Office this morning. Mahato was appointed the Minister for Forest and Environment and Pramila was designated the Minister of State for Education, Science and Technology on Tuesday. President Ram Chandra Paudel, on the recommendation of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, had appointed Mahato and Pramila as the minister and state minister on Tuesday. With this, a 25-member Council of Ministers has come to a complete shape.  

An earthquake measuring 4.5 on the Richter scale jolted Bajhang district in Sudurpaschim Province at 4: 06 am on Wednesday. According to the National Earthquake Monitoring and Research Centre, Lainchaur, the epicenter of the quake was around Daulichaur of Bajhang. Of late, earthquakes have become a recurring phenomenon in the eastern and western areas of Nepal. Nepal's hilly and mountainous regions are considered earthquake vulnerable areas.