Bestway Group Invests $230 Million in United Bank Limited

LONDON, January 26, 2011 - The Bestway Group, the UK based conglomerate founded and
chaired by Sir Anwar Pervez, has announced that it has increased its
shareholding in United Bank Limited (UBL) to 51.07% by acquiring an
additional 20% of the shares from the Abu Dhabi Group. HSBC provided fully
integrated advisory and financing solutions and acted as sole bank in the
deal.

UBL is Pakistan's second largest private bank. In 2002, a
consortium consisting of Bestway Group and Abu Dhabi Group acquired 51% of
UBL shares together with management rights and control of the bank through
the Government of Pakistan's privatisation process. The consortium currently
owns 61.37% of the bank with Bestway Group at 31.07% and Abu Dhabi Group at
30.30%.

After this investment, the management rights and control of
the bank will continue to remain within the same consortium. No changes are
being made in the senior management or in the board of directors.

Mr Zameer Choudrey, Chief Executive of Bestway Group said,
"This is a strategic long term investment for Bestway Group. We are delighted
to make this acquisition as we believe that UBL is a solid bank with a huge
potential for the future." Mr Choudrey stated, "This investment is a
testimony of Bestway Group's long term commitment to UBL and Pakistan."

Mark Haines, HSBC's Head of Corporate Banking in the Thames
Valley commented: "Bestway Group is a long-standing customer and a thriving
business. This funding demonstrates our ongoing commitment to the company,
and is a great example of how HSBC can help customers to take advantage of
international growth opportunities."

UBL has an asset base of $7.6 billion, advances of $4.3
billion, deposits of $5.98 billion, CAR of 14.4% and EPS of 8.7x. UBL has a
vast network of over 1,100 branches in Pakistan and a strong presence in
Middle East, North America, Europe, China and Central Asia. It has a UK based
subsidiary, United National Bank which has six branches in UK. UBL provides
employment to over 14,500 people and serves over 5 million customers.

Since 2002, UBL has achieved numerous milestones in all
aspects of its business. With a wide ranging dynamic portfolio of globally
competitive products and services, and a proven track record spanning over
half a century, UBL today is at the forefront of the banking sector in
Pakistan as well as in the region.

In looking to the future, Mr Choudrey said, "UBL shall
continue to focus on strengthening its balance sheet through acquisition of
low cost deposits and improvement in asset quality, as well as grow its
international business in a secure and selective manner."

"Overseas Pakistanis play an indispensible role in the
development of Pakistan. Bestway Group is proud to be a part of non resident
Pakistani diaspora and we hope to develop UBL into a conduit for bringing in
more investments into Pakistan from other non resident Pakistanis," said Mr
Choudrey.

Bestway Group is among the top ten family businesses in UK with annual
turnover of GBP2.1 billion. Bestway Group's wholesale operations are the 2nd
largest in the UK with an 18% market share. It trades from 61 warehouses,
covering over 5.5 million sq ft of selling space, offering a product range of
over 25,000 items and serving over 120,000 independent retailers and
foodservice customers nationally. The Group also provides employment to over
5,000 people in UK.

Bestway Group's wholesale operations continue to expand. In June 2010,
the Group acquired the Bellevue business from the Bensons in Scotland. In
October 2010, the Group opened a new state of the art warehouse in Aintree,
Liverpool. A month later, in November 2010, Bestway Group acquired the Martex
business in Scotland from CJ Lang. In a short period of six months, the Group
added six warehouses to its existing portfolio, taking the total to 61
warehouses.

Bestway Group's cement operations i.e. Bestway Cement Limited is the 2nd
largest cement manufacturer in Pakistan. It has four state of the art cement
plants with a total capacity of 6 million tonnes per annum and employs over
3,000 people. The company is also the largest exporter of cement to
Afghanistan and India. Bestway Cement Limited has set up a 15 MW Waste Heat
Recovery Power Plant at its Chakwal plant site, the first of its kind in
Pakistan.

Bestway Group's advisers for the acquisition were HSBC Global
Banking and funding for the acquisition was solely arranged by HSBC Bank plc
who are the Group's house bank.

Further Information:

Zameer Choudrey, Chief Executive Bestway Group, Tel:
+44(0)20-8453-1234

Or

Peter Cunard, PR Adviser Bestway Group, Tel +44(0)20-8991-5843
or +44(0)7768-555-285

Further Information: Zameer Choudrey, Chief Executive Bestway Group, Tel: +44(0)20-8453-1234; Or Peter Cunard, PR Adviser Bestway Group, Tel +44(0)20-8991-5843 or +44(0)7768-555-285