Pakistan's MCB drops plans to buy Islamic bank, to set up own unit
 

By Bernardo Vizcai** April 22 (Reuters) - Pakistan's MCB Bank Ltd will set up a wholly owned Islamic banking subsidiary while dropping plans to take a stake in Islamic lender Burj Bank, according to a filing with the Karachi stock exchange. Last month, MCB started due diligence on taking a 55 percent stake in unlisted Burj, which held assets worth 53.3 billion rupees ($547 million) as of December, but it said it would **t proceed for commercial reasons. Those plans would have included an additional investment by the private-sector arm of Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank , which already holds a 33.9 percent stake in Burj. Bahrain's Bank Alkhair is its largest shareholder, with a 37.9 percent stake in Burj, which it has classified as held-for-sale since June 2012.

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