Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL (standing 4th from left) along with Arif Habib, Chairman – Javedan Corporation / Arif Habib Group (standing 3rd from left), Shariah Board members, valued clients and senior members of the Bank at the inauguration of the HBL Islamic Banking Branch located at Naya Nazimabad, Karachi.

Karachi, Pakistan

HBL inaugurated three Islamic Banking branches in the last week as it ramped up efforts to expand its branch network to better serve Shariah-compliant products and services to its clients.

The first branch located in Jodia Bazar was inaugurated on 3 March 2022. This was followed by the inauguration of the Naya Nazimabad Branch and the Burki Trade Centre Branch, located on Superhighway, on 4 March 2022.

The Bank is engaged in offering services to clients in 300 cities across the country, through a network of 274 dedicated branches and 572 windows, with plans to expand its reach in the 2nd and 3rd tier cities across the country by adding 35 more branches by December 2022 to reach 309 branches.

HBL Islamic Banking also offers a complete product suite for its SME and Commercial Banking clients, ranging from short-term working capital financing to long-term project financing. It has also established 8 trade centers in key markets across the country to provide shariah-compliant solutions for the domestic and international trade finance requirements of clients.

Commenting on the occasion, Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL said, “HBL Islamic Banking continues to expand its footprint across the country to better serve the Islamic Banking needs of our clients. The demand for Shariah-compliant banking solutions and services has seen a sharp increase, and this expansion highlights HBL Islamic Bank’s commitment to support our clients’ strategic needs. With tailor made financial solutions, we will continue to maintain our lead as the eminent Islamic Banking player in the industry.”

Dr Mufti Muhammad Zubair Usmani, Chairman Sharia Board – HBL, commenting at the Jodia Bazar Branch inauguration said, “I would like to congratulate the entire HBL Islamic Banking team on the inauguration of the new branches, marking another accomplishment in the Bank’s fast-paced plan to expand its Islamic Banking network. May the traders in the markets avail the sharing compliant opportunities that Islamic banking has to offer.

HBL began its Islamic Banking journey many years ago and is working to scale on this front. I request people to adopt Islamic Banking which is the right choice.”

Commenting at the Naya Nazimabad inauguration, Arif Habib, Chairman – Javedan Corporation/Arif Habib Group, said, “Naya Nazimabad is an evolving community and its residents have growing financial needs. We are delighted that one of Pakistan’s biggest and fastest-growing digital banks, HBL, too has begun its operation in Naya Nazimabad.”

​Lt. General Nigar Johar HI(M) in conversation with Maya Inayat Ismail, Chief of Staff to the Chairman – HBL at the session hosted by HBL to commemorate International Women’s Day 2022. Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO - HBL, along with women staff and other members of the Bank were present on the occasion.

Karachi, Pakistan

​HBL commemorated International Women’s Day 2022 by inviting Lieutenant General Nigar Johar HI(M) to a session on 14 March 2022 at HBL Tower, Karachi. Lt. General Nigar is the first and only woman in the Pakistan Armed Forces to have reached the rank of a Lt. General and is also the only woman since partition to have commanded an armed forces hospital in the country.

​The session was attended by over 70 women staff from a cross-section of the Bank, including many who are a part of the senior management. Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO, and the senior leadership team of the Bank were also present at the session.

​Lt. General Nigar spoke at length about her life journey, breaking biases in the professional field, and the unwavering support she received from her family, specifically her father, mother and husband. Her advice to all women in the professional field was to work hard towards their dreams and believe in themselves.

​She emphasized that empowerment starts with one’s self, women need to take charge of their own lives, establish their own identity and stand up to all the challenges as they continue to work side by side with their men counterparts.

​She also spoke about the need to have diversity not just in numbers but in Managerial positions of Leadership. She said, “Women need to be decision-makers; they need to be policymakers. It is important for women to be in these roles, as only that will lead to a shift in the mindset and the culture. Men alone cannot be making decisions for women”.

Commenting on the occasion, Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL said, “With 20% of the HBL staff being women, we will continue to drive gender inclusion with more and more women in senior leadership roles.”

The session concluded with a collective thought of fostering a collaborative work environment between men and women and promoting gender partnership through equity and inclusion within workplaces across Pakistan.

​Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL along with valued clients and senior leadership of the Bank at the inauguration of HBL Prestige Lounges in Multan and Faisalabad.

HBL inaugurated two of its new Prestige Lounges located in Multan and Faisalabad. This is the first HBL Prestige Lounge in the respective cities, making a total of 27 lounges across 12 cities, with plans to further expand the Prestige footprint. The inauguration of both the lounges was led by Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL. Valued clients and senior leadership of the Bank was also present on the occasion.

​HBL Prestige provides a world-class banking experience to high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs). This exclusive proposition offers tailored solutions through dedicated digital & physical channels and portfolio managers who provide personalized banking services to its clients. The state-of-the-art Prestige Lounges are located strategically in high visibility areas of key cities.

​Commenting on the occasion, Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL said, “HBL Prestige is exclusively designed to meet the financial and lifestyle needs of our priority banking clients across Pakistan. We are delighted to now serve our high-net-worth clients in Multan and Faisalabad with the inauguration of the two Prestige lounges. We hope to remain true to HBL Prestige’s motto of “With you, in what you value.”

Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO - HBL launched the Bank’s Tree Plantation Drive 2022 in Islamabad. Lieutenant General Javed Mahmood Bukhari (Retd), HI(M), Rector NUST, Muhammad Amir Khan, President & CEO - HBL Microfinance Bank and other senior members from the organizations were also present on the occasion.​

Islamabad, Pakistan

​HBL begins its ‘Tree Plantation Drive 2022’, with the aim of restoring landscapes and mitigating climate change in Pakistan.

​The inaugural ceremony was held at the HBL Tower in Islamabad with Muhammad Amir Khan, President & CEO - HBL Microfinance Bank and other senior members from the Bank. A second ceremony was held at NUST and attended by Lieutenant General Javed Mahmood Bukhari (Retd), HI(M), Rector – NUST. The management of NUST engaged more than 300 students and faculty members for the plantation drive. Both the inaugural ceremonies were led by Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL.

The plantation drive falls under the “Ten Billion Tree Tsunami (TBTT)” initiative of the Ministry of Climate Change, Government of Pakistan. This five-year project is aimed towards addressing climate change while providing employment opportunities across Pakistan.​

​HBL aims to plant 20,000 saplings of indigenous plants across 12 locations in different cities of Pakistan. This is in line with the national objective of sustainable development as the Bank continues to play its part in instilling Environment Social Governance (ESG) practices in Pakistan. This initiative will also give an opportunity to the HBL staff to contribute towards the betterment of the environment and serve the local communities as part of the Bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) agenda.

Commenting on the occasion, Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL said, “HBL, as a responsible corporate entity is committed to supporting the Government of Pakistan in meeting its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on Climate Action amongst other Global SDGs. The National Plantation Drive by HBL is a testament to the Bank’s commitment towards a greener Pakistan.”​

HBL in collaboration with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) holds the 1st Regional Agricultural Coordination Committee Meeting for Balochistan. Senior executives from the Government of Balochistan, SBP and HBL along with other members of the banking fraternity also attended the session.

Balochistan, Pakistan

HBL as the designated champion bank for Balochistan hosted the first meeting of the Regional Agricultural Coordination Committee (RACC) in collaboration with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). The meeting was held in Quetta on 25 March 2022. Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL led the meeting, and it was attended by Noor Ahmed - Director, Agriculture, Credit & Microfinance Department – SBP, and Amjad Ali Imran, Chief Manager – SBP BSC - Quetta. Senior executives from the Government of Baluchistan, SBP, HBL, other banks operative in the province, as well as the farming community also attended the session.

The RACC meeting was focused around developing a comprehensive framework to address the agricultural outreach challenges in the underserved areas of Balochistan. The committee will work towards devising strategies, focused on serving the farmers and enhancing financial inclusion amongst the rural masses in the province.

Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL, commenting on the occasion said, “SBP has designated HBL the Champion Bank for Baluchistan to lead the industry in improving access to finance for the farmers in the province. The Bank is playing an active role in enhancing credit outreach for the province through capacity building, farmer literacy programs as well as tailored agricultural finance products. HBL is committed to serving the underserved farming community of Baluchistan, in line with SBP’s vision of financial inclusion in Pakistan.”

​The session concluded with the commitment from all stakeholders to work towards expanding the agricultural landscape by empowering the farming community of Baluchistan.

Karachi, Pakistan

HBL, in its mission to expand the digital ecosystem in the country, has recently introduced mobile Point-of-Sales (mPOS), in partnership with VISA. With this launch, HBL becomes the first bank in Pakistan to provide on-site card transactions without the need of a physical POS machine. HBL signed the agreement in April 2021 to introduce mPOS to Pakistan, and the solution is now available in the market for adoption by courier services and e-commerce businesses. Pakistan’s leading retail and e-commerce merchants, have already signed-up for the product, thereby empowering their customers with an additional channel for payment.

​Earlier, online purchases could only be paid for at the checkout or through cash on delivery. With the introduction of mPOS, HBL has embarked on a new payment journey, that will revolutionize the digital payment landscape of Pakistan.

Only a few e-commerce merchants give their clients the option to pay with card on delivery. This is because POS machines are expensive, heavy, and mostly immobile. HBL’s mPOS brings the POS machine into the rider’s smartphone by simply downloading an app. Clients who shop online can now make their payments at the time of delivery via using their Visa / Mastercard debit or credit card. As an alternate to ‘Cash on Delivery’, HBL mPOS also enables customers to make a payment after receiving the goods, and to avail all card-related points and promotions. This new technology has the potential to become the industry standard over the next few years, thus, reshaping the e-commerce industry in Pakistan.

​Commenting on the partnership, Abrar Mir, Chief Innovation and Financial Inclusion Officer said, “HBL prides itself in empowering its clients by increasing their choices while accelerating the digitalization of the Pakistani economy. Our collaboration with VISA will directly benefit online shoppers, enabling them with a convenient payment solution. We believe that this partnership will further our digital growth, open new e-commerce avenues for both merchants and clients and foster financial inclusion in Pakistan.”

Kamil Khan, Visa’s Country Manager for Pakistan, said, “Smartphone penetration in Pakistan is tremendous, but there is still a large gap between the different payment options available to consumers for online and in-store purchases. Our partnership with HBL to launch the first mPOS solution in Pakistan aims to bridge this gap by enabling merchants of all sizes - whether large or mid-sized retailers, small stores or street vendors - to offer digital payments to consumers when purchasing goods and services. Moreover, this is a great opportunity for merchants to convert Cash-on-Delivery clients and combat last mile challenges and ultimately pave the way for more sales growth and revenue. This is another milestone in Pakistan’s journey to build a vibrant digital payments ecosystem, strengthen the eCommerce market and transition to a cashless economy.”

HBL is driven towards expanding secure and safe payment options available to e-commerce clients while ensuring economic growth via digitalization. The partnership between HBL and VISA for mPOS will prove to be another groundbreaking milestone to strengthen the e-commerce industry of the country. We encourage courier services and ecommerce businesses which use riders to deliver products and receive payments to sign up for this facility and start scaling their businesses immediately.

Fouzia Janjua, Head Branch Operations & Account Services – HBL (standing 3rd from right), Dr. Farida Shaikh, Principal – University of Sindh (Elsa Kazi Campus), Hyderabad (standing 3rd from right) and Mujtaba Naqvi, Head South – HBL (standing 1st from right) at the inauguration of the HBL Branch.

Hyderabad, Pakistan

HBL inaugurated its first all women branch in Hyderabad at the Sindh University, Old Campus.

Dr. Farida Shaikh, Principal _ University of Sindh, (Elsa Kazi Campus), Hyderabad, cut the inauguration ribbon. Present at the ceremony were Syed Mujtaba Husain Naqvi, Head South – Branch Banking, Fouzia Jabeen Janjua, Head - Branch Operations and Account Services along with other senior members of the Bank.

This initiative is in line with HBL’s diversity agenda and its vision of creating a more diverse and equitable workforce, as well as the need to increase the engagement of women in financial services. The Bank has been recruiting an increasing number of women across all business functions, ensuring they are provided equal opportunities for advancement and success.

Currently, women comprise 20% of HBL’s staff. The Bank is confident it can grow this number to 25% by 2025.

Commenting on the occasion, Fouzia Janjua, Head Branch Operations & Account Services – HBL said, “As Pakistan’s largest bank, HBL strives to place itself at the forefront of the DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) agenda. We have a strong mandate to increase the Bank’s gender diversity by recruiting women at all levels into the workforce and foster a diverse work environment through progressive policies.”

Karachi, Pakistan

HBL today declared a consolidated profit before tax of Rs. 14.6 billion for the first quarter of 2022 and a profit after tax of Rs. 8.6 billion, both higher than in the same period last year. The Q1’22 results include a one-time severance charge of Rs. 2.6 billion. Excluding the impact of this one-time charge, the Bank’s profit before tax is 18% more than in Q1’21. Along with the results, the Bank declared a dividend of Rs. 2.25 per share (22.5%).

Following a breakthrough performance in 2021, the Bank continued to build on its growth story, with its fortress balance sheet increasing by another 5% over December 2021 to Rs. 4.5 trillion. Beating historical trends, HBL was able to grow current accounts beyond the previous year-end peak to nearly Rs. 1.2 trillion, 37.4% of the total deposit base of Rs. 3.2 trillion. Advances grew by 4% in one quarter alone, well ahead of the market, to nearly Rs. 1.6 trillion, with broad-based growth across all segments. The Bank’s flagship Consumer business continued to break records with loans crossing Rs. 110 billion; agriculture lending achieved a new high of Rs. 41 billion. HBL Microfinance Bank, the largest microfinance provider of housing loans, posted double-digit growth with deposits crossing Rs. 100 billion and a loan portfolio of Rs. 65 billion.

Net interest income of the Bank increased by Rs. 3.8 billion to Rs. 36.3 billion in the first three months of 2022, driven by an exceptional growth of over Rs. 450 billion in average volumes. Fee income continued to break barriers, rising 24% to Rs. 7.3 billion; the fee engine is firing on all cylinders, with an outstanding performance from the Cards business, and double-digit growth in all key businesses. A spectacular Treasury performance resulted in income rising by 42%. Total revenue of the Bank thus increased by Rs. 6 billion over Q1’21 to Rs. 46.6 billion.

Administrative expenses (excluding severance charge of Rs. 2.6 billion) increased to Rs. 27.8 billion on the back of rising inflationary pressures, higher sales-driven costs and a continued investment in people and technology. Total provisions reduced by 36% to Rs. 1.2 billion; the infection ratio remains well-controlled at 5.2% with total coverage at over 100%. Demonstrating its commitment to giving back to the community, the endowment fund of the HBL Foundation was doubled to Rs. 100 million, while the annual contribution was raised by 50%, to 1.5% of post-tax profits.

Commenting on the Bank’s Q1’22 performance, Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL said, “The Bank’s business volumes have set new benchmarks on the back of a very strong performance across all client segments and activity drivers. We continue to work diligently on building technological innovation, working with the Government of Pakistan on public-private partnerships, and most importantly serving our clients with excellence. HBL’s digital channels, being our strategic priority, processed an unprecedented Rs. 2.8 trillion from 109 million transactions, representing a YoY growth of 64%.”

HBL solidified its dominant position in all aspects of its Consumer business. HBL Cards remained the first choice for clients, registering a 58% growth in Credit Card spend over same period last year. HBL’s Debit Card remains the market leader with 6.1 million cards and a 21% market share. Spend volumes increased by 53% over Q1’21, with e-commerce volumes growing by 56%.

There has been a considerable focus on formal finance to Small Enterprises under HBL POS finance and SBP’s SAAF scheme with disbursements of Rs. 1.4 billion under each program. HBL maintained its leadership position in Supply Chain Financing, registering a growth of 20% over Dec’21 to reach Rs. 7.4 billion. HBL’s total SME funded advances in Q1’22 stood at Rs. 73 billion.

During the quarter, HBL Nisa opened 37,000 new accounts with deposits of over Rs. 6 billion. HBL has remained amongst the highest contributors to the RDA initiative with 20% of all RDA accounts; during Q1’22, we channeled an additional USD 100 million into the country. HBL Prestige branches were inaugurated in Multan and Faisalabad, taking the total presence to 27 lounges in 12 cities.

HBL was also designated as the “Champion Bank for Balochistan” by SBP to lead the banking industry and enhance agricultural credit and financial inclusion in the province. The Bank has been focusing on broadening its agricultural outreach in the underserved regions of the country.

HBL maintained its pole position in cash management, with throughput rising by 49% to nearly Rs. 2.6 trillion in Q1’22. HBL has become the first bank in Pakistan to allow asset management companies to process real-time redemption payments by successfully integrating the HBL Pay Business Banking platform with CDC (Central Depository Company).

HBL Investment Banking maintained its dominant position and closed a number of offshore and onshore transactions across sectors, including a USD 35 million offshore leveraged buyout facility in the Telecom and Internet space. The Bank also arranged syndicate financing for an automobile manufacturer and provided a comprehensive advisory for a Public-Private-Partnership project in the mining space. HBL made major headway in its real estate initiatives, developer finance and low-cost housing.

HBL continues to be a thought leader in the Environmental Social Governance (ESG) space and is the first Bank to announce a “net-zero” emissions policy, which we are targeting to achieve by 2030. The Bank is piloting the adoption of the Taxonomy Common Ground (CGT), which is a tool to facilitate direct flows of capital to green projects. HBL supported the Ministry of Climate Change in its globally recognized “Ten Billion Tree Tsunami” initiative for ecosystem restoration and initiated the plantation of 20,000 trees across the country. During the quarter, HBL disbursed over Rs. 7 billion for sustainable financing projects. Our diversity ratio continues to increase with 20% of our employees being women; our goal is to reach 22% by the end of this year. Recently, we opened our first women-only branch in Hyderabad.

Digital transactions continued exponential growth with HBL’s Mobile Banking and Internet Banking registering a growth of 97% in transaction value, to Rs. 417 billion in Q1’22. HBL Mobile app users crossed 2.6 million with a 61% growth in transaction volume to 26 million in Q1’22.

The Konnect account portfolio witnessed a growth of 33% reaching a total of 7.4 million accounts at the end of Q1’22. Total throughput registered a growth of 103%, from Rs. 166 billion in Q1’21 to Rs. 337 billion in Q1’22. Total collections at Konnect channels crossed Rs. 25 billion during Q1’22. Konnect Debit Cards portfolio reached 1.2 million at the end of Q1 2022. The Bank also launched an Islamic Banking mobile app empowering Islamic banking clients to meet their digital banking needs via a dedicated solution.

The Bank processed e-commerce transactions worth Rs. 8 billion recording a 57% growth in volumes compared to the same period last year. In addition, 30% growth was recorded in the number of merchants. HBL also launched a state-of-the-art mPOS solution to accept e-commerce payments from clients at their doorstep.

HBL ended 2021 being recognized as Best Bank in Pakistan from Euromoney Awards, and Pakistan’s Best Bank 2021 from the Pakistan Banking Awards. Continuing its winning streak in Q1’22, HBL won awards for Best Green Bond and Best Structured Finance Deal 2021 from The Asset Triple A Sustainable Capital Markets Country & Regional Awards 2021. Furthermore, HBL won eight awards in the 2021 Global Diversity and Inclusion Benchmark (GDIB) awards in the categories of Best Practice in Pakistan and Most Progressive in Pakistan.

Karachi, Pakistan

HBL, Pakistan’s largest commercial bank in collaboration with Finja, the country’s largest digital SME lending fintech, along with an international technology partner, has applied for a digital banking license, under the Licensing and Regulatory Framework for Digital Banks released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

This collaboration will enable HBL and Finja to co-create digital products and services and rapidly increase financial inclusion in targeted segments. In this regard, grant of a digital banking license by SBP, will allow HBL and Finja to consolidate existing efforts of both organizations under one umbrella to digitize the economy.

HBL and Finja have been strategic partners since April 2021, when HBL made its first equity investment in Finja. As a result of this collaboration, a unique digital lending program was launched, targeted at Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and their associated supply chains.

Commenting on the opportunity, Sagheer Mufti, Chief Operating Officer – HBL, said, “HBL views this opportunity to apply for a digital banking license as an exciting evolution of the digital eco-system for the benefit of clients, the unbanked and the country. HBL’s partnership with Finja should have a significant impact in its quest for financial inclusion.”

Qasif Shahid, Co-Founder and CEO of Finja remarked, “Our partnership with HBL gives us a head start in creating and rolling out digital banking products and services well before other players aspiring to set up digital banks under the new license regime.” He went on to say, “The partnership puts us in a winning position as it ramps up our capability to offer clients digital products.”