Bank Alfalah enters into fintech foray
Bank Alfalah has signed an
agreement to acquire a 7.2% equity stake worth PKR 140 million in QistBazaar, a
fast growing fintech company.
The signing ceremony was attended
by senior leadership of Bank Alfalah, including Atif Bajwa, President and CEO;
Aasim Wajid Jawad, Group Head of Strategy, Transformation, Customer Experience
and Venture Capital Investments and Yahya Khan, Group Head of Digital Banking.
From QistBazaar, Co-Founders Arif
Lakhani and Karim Gilani, along with other executives, attended the event.
QistBazaar
has been licensed by Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan to operate
as Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) non-bank financial company (NBFCs) platform.
It is the first time in the
country that a commercial bank has taken an equity stake in a BNPL fintech.
With this partnership, Bank
Alfalah will set up a precedent for more collaboration between commercial banks
and fintech.
In addition to the equity
agreement, Bank Alfalah and QistBazaar have signed an embedded financing
agreement in Shariah Compliant mode for up to PKR 350 million.
The Bank will introduce digital
financing products within the QistBazaar platform. This will be aimed at
customers with limited or no access to formal credit.
According
to Atif Bajwa, President and CEO, our collaboration with QistBazaar through an
equity investment and Islamic-embedded financing deal will provide inventive
financial solutions.
Arif
Lakhani, CEO QistBazaar, said QistBazaar has served over 17,000 Pakistanis since
inception.
The
Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) facility is increasingly becoming popular due to its
affordability, convenience and financial flexibility while offering a
cost-effective solution to traditional means of purchasing in times of
high-interest rates.
Bank Alfalah currently operates a thriving BNPL product through its award-winning e-commerce marketplace platform, Alfa Mall.
Source: Daily Pakistan