With an end-to-end reform of its manual operations, country’s largest public bank expects to cut costs, deliver change from within
To power its trade finance operations and lower transaction costs while providing a superior customer experience, Pakistan’s largest public sector bank, National Bank of Pakistan (NBP), has traded-in some manual operations and implemented an advanced digitalization platform that includes capabilities for frictionless trade and supply chain finance — including buyer and seller loans; letters of credit; collections; guarantees, and government support for export credit and SME loans.
The end-to-end digitalization solution comes with a development toolkit that enables NBP to deliver change themselves, providing “a more predictable total cost of ownership and (enabling) banks to maintain a clear upgrade path.” The solution also integrated the bank’s nationwide trade operations with the core, treasury and SWIFT functions, offering 360-degree visibility that can help in reducing operational costs.
Said the bank’s Senior Executive VP & Group Chief, Operations, Imran Farooqui: ““In the digital age it is important to have the right systems in place to give customers the best possible experience, so digital transformation has been a key priority for us. We (have) the tools we need to modernize, future-proof and ultimately grow our business.”
In its vendor selection process NBP declared that it had chosen a vendor it had already built a corporate relationship with. According to Manish Joshi, Managing Director (Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific), Finastra, the firm providing the digitalization technology: “Increasing complexity, regulatory changes and costs of capital mean that efficient trade and supply chain finance management have never been more important. In this environment, banks that are constrained by legacy infrastructures, disjointed processes and fragmented transactional views will struggle to successfully grow their businesses,” alluding to banks in Pakistan’s need for a comprehensive, modern solution to overcomes these complex challenges.
