Maha Prasad Adhikari

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Maha Prasad Adhikari
महा प्रसाद अधिकारी
Maha Prasad Adhikari in 2023
17th Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank[a]
In office
6 April 2020 – 5 April 2025
Preceded byChiranjivi Nepal
Chief Executive Officer at Investment Board of Nepal[b]
In office
June 2016 – April 2020
Preceded byRadhesh Pant
Succeeded bySushil Bhatta
Deputy Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank
In office
2010–2015
Personal details
Residence(s)Lalitpur, Nepal
Alma materTribhuvan University
Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (Chartered Accountant)

Maha Prasad Adhikari (Nepali: महा प्रसाद अधिकारी) is currently serving and the 17th Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), the Central Bank of Nepal. He is the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Bank as per the provisions of the Nepal Rastra Bank Act 2002.[1] He was appointed as the Governor of the Bank by Government of Nepal on 6 April 2020.[2] Before he was appointed as the Governor, he also served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Investment Board Nepal (IBN) for three years.[3] He also worked as the deputy Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank for five years during 2010-2015.[4]

Education[edit]

Adhikari holds a bachelor's degree from Tribhuvan University and also is a chartered accountant from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India which he obtained during his service at NRB. Later, he obtained an equivalency certificate for a Master's degree from Tribhuvan University. He is also a fellow member of Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nepal (ICAN).[5] After he was appointed the CEO of IBN, former CEO of IBN, Radhesh Pant who was also competing with Adhikari for the post filed a writ challenging the academic qualifications of Adhikari in the Supreme Court of Nepal. He claimed Adhikari lacked the required Master's degree specified in the Investment Board Act of 2011.[6] The court decided to hold the final hearing on the petition against his appointment.[7]

Career[edit]

Adhikari served Nepal Rastra Bank for more than thirty years in different capacities. He worked in areas such as the implementation of Risk Based Supervision and Accounting Standards in Nepalese Banks and Financial Institutions.

During his tenure as the Governor of NRB, the Bank facilitated private players to implement the latest payment technology like QR payment for retail payments which has now spread across the country.[8][9]

During his term as the CEO of IBN, IBN organized two international investments summit to attract foreign direct investment in Nepal aftermath of the April 2015 Nepal earthquake.[10][11]

Notable events[edit]

In 2022, the Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted an investigation into a transnational fraud scheme affecting U.S. citizens which involved posing as legitimate technology and antivirus companies to steal money from them. The fund was then transferred to bank accounts controlled by Prithvi Bahadur Shah in Nepal.[12][13] Nepal Rastra Bank received a request from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to confiscate and return the money. The Bank withheld the money and directed it to the Department of Money Laundering Investigation for further Investigation. Finance Minister Janardan Sharma who was accused of being closely associated with Shah applied pressure on Nepal Rastra Bank to release the funds which Adhikari refused to fulfill.[14][15] Amidst the disagreement, Cabinet suspended Adhikari from the post in a charge of leaking sensitive information of the Government.[16][17] Adhikari went to Supreme Court of Nepal and the court gave an interim order to reinstate him after which he resumed his office.[18][19]

In July 2022, CPN-UML, the main opposition party in the Nepalese parliament, revealed its central committee members, including a name M Adhikari in the Finance and Planning committee. This led to speculations and criticism on social media, linking him to Governor Adhikari.[20] Adhikari requested the CPN-UML to correct the misinformation, denying any connection to M Adhikari. The party later clarified that the listed M Adhikari is not the NRB Governor, Maha Prasad Adhikari.[21]

Other activities[edit]

Currently, Adhikari is Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors at the International Monetary Fund representing NRB.[22] He represents NRB in the Board of Governors of The South East Asian Central Banks Research and Training Centre (SEACEN)[23] and Asia Pacific Rural and Agriculture credit association (APRACA).[24] He also served as a Member of the Board of Directors at the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI) during 2020-23.[25]

He also served as a member of the Committee for Improvement in Transparency, Accountability and Governance (CITAG) of South Asian Federation of Accountants.

External links[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Adhikari was suspended from the post of Governor on 8th April 2022 by Government of Nepal and the Supreme Court of Nepal reinstated him to the post on 20th April 2022.
  2. ^ Adhikari was appointed for four years as per the provision of the Investment Board Act 2011, however, he resigned from the post after he was appointed as the Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank.

References[edit]

  1. ^ Nepal Rastra Bank Act, 2002, Section 15-Appointment of Governor
  2. ^ "Maha Prasad Adhikari appointed governor of Nepal central bank". The Times of India. April 6, 2020.
  3. ^ "Adhikari appointed Investment Board Nepal CEO". OnlineKhabar English News. 2016-06-23. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  4. ^ Nabina (2015-12-25). "Deputy governors' seats likely to stay vacant". The Himalayan Times. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  5. ^ Maha Prasad Adhikari
  6. ^ "New IBN CEO's academic qualification questioned". My Republica.
  7. ^ "Supreme Court decides to hold final hearing on petition against IBN CEO appointment". kathmandupost.com. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  8. ^ "Transactions through QR codes tripled in one year". My Republica., English language newspaper in Nepal
  9. ^ "Vegetable markets around Nepal to have QR code-based payment method; Governor Adhikari launches QR code payment system at Naxal Vegetable market". sharesansar.com. December 15, 2016.
  10. ^ LORD MAYOR OF LONDON MEETS WITH IBN OFFICIALS, press release by Investment Board Nepal, Monthly Newsletter, Issue 9, Jan.-Feb. 2017
  11. ^ "Nepal secures nearly $12 billion from Investment Summit 2019". Kathmandu Post. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  12. ^ Kathmandu, U. S. Embassy (March 1, 2023). "Nepal Police – U.S. Cooperation Leads to Prosecution of Fraud Scheme". U.S. Embassy in Nepal.
  13. ^ "How Prithvi Shah scams US $4 million from US citizens with false FDI promises"., Khaburhub.com, Retrieved 2023-11-24
  14. ^ "Prithvi Bahadur Shah and finance minister-NRB governor tussle: Your FAQs answered". OnlineKhabar English News. April 21, 2022.
  15. ^ Shrestha, Prithvi Man (January 3, 2023). "Nepal risks being 'greylisted' for abetting money laundering". Asia News Network.
  16. ^ "Governor Adhikari suspended on charge of leaking sensitive information". Kathmandu Post. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  17. ^ PTI (2022-04-10). "Nepal suspends Central Bank Governor amid forex woes". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  18. ^ Republica. "SC orders govt not to implement its decision to suspend NRB Governor Adhikari". My Republica. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  19. ^ "NRB's suspended Governor Adhikari resumes office". english.ratopati.com (in Nepali). Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  20. ^ "Maha Prasad Adhikari in controversy again as UML mentions M Adhikari in its party department". OnlineKhabar English News. July 13, 2022.
  21. ^ Adhikari, Setopati :: You're not M. Adhikari: UML tells NRB Governor Maha Prasad. "You're not M Adhikari: UML tells NRB Governor Maha Prasad Adhikari".
  22. ^ "IMF Members' Quotas and Voting Power, and IMF Board of Governors". IMF. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  23. ^ "Board of Governors". The SEACEN Centre. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  24. ^ admin (2020-06-18). "Governor Mr. Maha Prasad Adikari, NRB, Nepal". APRACA. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  25. ^ "About the AFI Network". issuu. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
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