Three national and two international companies have bid for New Kabul Bank, Ministry of Finance said Sunday.
The ministry did not name the companies but said the process of reviewing the offers of these companies will start by February 16 next year.
The deadline for bidding on New Kabul Bank was specified as January 13, 2013, but New Year's holidays as well as requests from a number of international companies caused it to be postponed to February 16, the ministry said.
According to the law, bidding time should be 21 days, but since this is an international bidding, there is a three-month timeframe for it, the ministry's spokesman added.
Talking of a number of other companies that have expressed interest to procure the bank, Spokesman Wahid Tawhidi added: "There are a few other companies, too, that have shown readiness for procurement of the bank, but they are still processing their offers. The number of bidding companies might exceed five by the end of bidding time."
According to Tawhidi, New Kabul Bank is a large entity and the government is open to several companies jointly procuring it. But the ministry will come to an agreement with only one bidding company, he added.
The troubled Kabul Bank was bailed out by the government after a $900 million scandal involving high-ranking government officials and their families.
Kabul Bank was hailed as a success story in Afghanistan's banking sector until the scandal.