The joint merger committee formed by Nepal Investment Bank and Himalayan Bank is taking its own sweet time to finalize their merger deal and start operations as one company.

The new company, which is to become the biggest commercial bank in Nepal, has again written to the central bank to allow time to conclude the merger process even as shares of both companies owned by the public remain frozen for months.

The two banks had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for a merger in April, committing to complete the merger within two months. The new bank was to be chaired by Prithvi Bahadur Pandey while Ashok Rana would be its Chief Executive Officer. Pandey is currently the chairman of Nepal Investment Bank; Rana is the chief executive officer of Himalayan Bank.

Also read: Fraud case against Century bank 

NRB had earlier extended the deadline for the merger by three months after the banks cited paucity of time. The first extension ended on Dec 5. After the process was not completed even in the extended period, the merger committee wrote a letter to the NRB requesting another extension.

Lately, various obstacles have been seen in the merger. Before the merger formally concludes, both the banks need to pass a merger proposal from the annual general meeting. While Nepal Investment Bank has already convened its general meeting, Himalayan Bank has not yet set a date for the same.

NRB has given conditional permission to Himalayan Bank to convene its general assembly. However, it has been said that the proposed cash dividend to shareholders will be distributed only after the completion of the merger. For this year, the bank had proposed 21 percent bonus shares and 4 percent cash dividend. It is said that the Himalayan Bank's shareholders are not happy with the decision.