United Bank Limited (UBL), a Karachi-based commercial bank, and the Pakistan Microfinance Investment Company (PMIC), an organization funded by the governments of the UK and Germany, recently reached an agreement through which PMIC will link eight of its partner microfinance institutions (MFIs) to UBL Omni, a branchless banking service. Among the goals of the effort are to reduce the prices the MFIs charge for loans and to reduce borrowing costs in general in underserved areas of the country.
UBL, which was founded in 1959, operates 1,375 branches in Pakistan and 19 abroad. As of 2017, it had USD 18 billion in total assets.
PMIC, headquartered in Islamabad, aims to provide underserved communities in Pakistan with financial and other related services, such as microinsurance, technical advisory services, capacity building relating to renewable energy, and funding for education and housing. The organization is registered as an “investment finance company” with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan.
By Ryan Gauthier, Research Associate
Sources and Additional Resources
Business Recorder:
http://fp.brecorder.com/2017/10/20171012225534/
United Bank Limited:
http://www.ubldirect.com/
PMIC:
http://pmic.pk/
United Bank Limited 2017 Quarter 3 Report:
http://www.ubldirect.com/corporate/resources/ubl/aboutus/financial_report/report_2017/UBLQuarterlyReportSeptember2017.pdf
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: World Bank Providing $130m for Financial Inclusion Effort in Pakistan:
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-world-bank-providing-130m-financial-inclusion-effort-pakistan/
Do you know that MicroCapital publishes the MicroCapital Monitor newspaper each month? Find out more at https://www.microcapital.org/products-page/.
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