Kathmandu: Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) has constituted a three-member task force under the leadership of Dr. Rewat Bahadur Karki to recommend comprehensive reforms aimed at strengthening the country’s banking sector.

The task force includes former banker Bhuwan Kumar Dahal as a member, while the Executive Director of the Banking and Financial Institutions Regulation Department of NRB will serve as the secretary. The committee has been given a one-month deadline to submit its report.

According to NRB, the task force has been mandated to suggest measures to make banking policies more liberal yet prudent, promote risk-based and effective supervision, and ensure the development of customer-friendly banking services.

In addition, the task force will recommend ways the banking sector can play a more proactive role in enhancing economic activities, improving credit access in rural areas, and addressing issues related to mergers and acquisitions of banks and financial institutions. It will also be responsible for identifying and resolving challenges that arise from these structural changes.

The NRB has further directed the task force to provide suggestions on the banking sector's role in removing Nepal from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list. It will also evaluate the central bank’s coordinating role in the development of the capital market.