Pakistan’s wealthiest businessman is seeking to expand his banking group into India, in a further sign of a thaw in the often troubled relations between the neighbouring nuclear-armed south Asian states.
The move follows a period in which the two countries have begun a number of initiatives to liberalise trade, including in the banking sector. It also comes after the April visit to India of Asif Ali Zardari, Pakistan’s president, the first in close to a decade, and follows moves to allow Pakistani businesses to make foreign direct investments into India.
Both governments have focused on improved economic ties as a means to improve a relationship that has frequently been marred by armed conflict and terrorism, most recently following the 2008 attacks in Mumbai by Pakistani militants.
Mian Mohammad Mansha, owner of the Nishat business group, one of Pakistan’s largest conglomerates, told the Financial Times in an interview that his group had been the first to apply to open branches in India, following recent rule changes.