Ant Financial buys stake in Pakistani microfinance bank

Ant Financial Services Group is making a foray into Pakistan through a deal that will give the financial technology giant a 45 percent stake in a local mobile financial services provider.

The Chinese company has agreed to pay $184.5 million for its share in Telenor Microfinance Bank, which runs Pakistan's first mobile financial services platform Easypaisa.

The partnership is likely to strengthen TMB's payment platform and set new standards in the digital banking business in Pakistan, said Sigve Brekke, CEO of the bank's Norwegian parent Telenor Group in a statement on Tuesday.