Kabeer Naqvi
President & CEO
Mr. Kabeer Naqvi represents a small percentage of professionals who has risen to the very top of Microfinance Banking industry in Pakistan at a remarkable pace. He has nearly 18 years of work experience to his name and has been with U Bank since Sep 2015.
Mr. Naqvi has extensive work experience in External Audit, Corporate Finance, Internal Audit and Taxation and has served at Ernst & Young Saudi Arabia, TPL Pakistan, House of Habib and Tameer Microfinance Bank. He served as the Chief of Staff & Chief Financial Officer at Tameer Microfinance Bank where his glorious career spanned over 9 years. Mr. Naqvi is a trained accountant and a distinguished member of ACCA – the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
Akbar Aziz Burki
Head of Security, Health Safety & Environment (SHSE)
Mr. Akbar has over 14 years of experience in handling Security, Safety, Health, Environment and has played a vital role in development of SHSE culture at U Microfinance Bank.
Previously Mr. Burki has worked at key positions at ZonG, CM Pak. Ltd., Abacus Consultants, Integrated Security Systems and UN/IOM-Hajvairy Group. He holds a MBA from Muhammad Ali Jinnah University-Islamabad and holds various International Certifications in Security, Occupational Health & Safety from NEBOSH-IGC England and Wales.
Ambreen Malik
Chief Innovation & Financial Inclusion Officer
Ms. Malik is a graduate of London School of Economics and Political Science and holds degrees in Business, Development and Urban policy. She has nearly 17 years of work experience spanning Pakistan, UK and The Philippines. She has worked in Retail, Priority banking and Trade Finance with ABN AMRO Pakistan, Dubai Islamic Bank Pakistan and HBL, UK respectively. Ms. Malik brings an incredibly diverse experience to U Microfinance Bank. A shift in career took her to the likes of Habitat for Humanity International, The Asia Foundation and Senate of Philippines. She has also taught at National University of Science & Technology – Islamabad.
Ghulam Qadir
Chief Financial Officer
Mr. Qadir brings 24 years of work experience to the table. He is a Chartered Accountant by training. Qadir has 16 years of banking experience of working in Pakistan and Canada. He has served with Tangerine Bank in Canada which is a pioneer in Branchless Banking in North America. He has served at Bank Alfalah Limited Pakistan in various capacities for nearly 11 years and has also worked with Deloitte Pakistan.
Haidar Ali
Chief Credit Officer
Mr. Haidar Ali is an experienced banker with more than 10 years of Banking experience prior to joining U Bank. He started his career as Management Trainee with Bank Alfalah and served at various key positions across different areas of banking spanning over Branch Banking, Credits, Compliance and Risk Management both in Pakistan and overseas. His last assignment was “Head Risk Management” FINCA Microfinance Bank Limited where he played a vital role establishment of Risk Management function of the bank.
Mr. Haidar Ali has done his Masters in Business Administration from the University of Peshawar.
Mariam Zeeshan
National Sales Head – Liability
Mariam brings with her 13 years of experience in corporate and commercial banking. She has an MBA degree from Bahria University Islamabad. Her expertise include corporate finance, liability management, product design, cash management and transaction banking.
She has previously worked with MCB Bank where her last held position was Head of Transaction Banking North and has extensive experience in establishing relationships very diverse clientele.
Mehvish Muneera Ismail
Head of Legal
Mehvish M. Ismail brings with her nearly 9 years of diversified legal experience, with an expertise in corporate and commercial advisory, including regulatory & legal compliance, corporate governance, company and banking laws. Her career trajectory has exposed her to multiple legal jurisdictions ranging from Qatar, UK, US & Pakistan.
Ms. Ismail holds a B.A./LL.B from LUMS and an LL.M. from the University of Cambridge, UK, where she was a recipient of the Cambridge Commonwealth Trust Award, and the Noon Educational Foundation Award.
Mubashar Shahani
Head of Internal Audit
Mr. Shahani is a Chartered Accountant by profession and an associate member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan. He has around 12 years of work experience in external as well as internal audit. Prior to joining U Microfinance Bank, he had worked with Tameer Microfinance Bank where he was actively involved in development of Internal Audit function and successfully designed and implemented risk based audit methodology for the Bank’s branchless banking business (easypaisa). He had also worked with KPMG Pakistan and KPMG Lower Gulf Limited and was involved in audit of clients in financial services, manufacturing and service industry.
Muhammad Adnan Siddiqui
Chief Information Officer, IT
Mr. Muhammad Adnan Siddiqui brings over 20 years of experience in the field of Information Technology. In his last role for a commercial bank, he was part of the strategic team for the development and deployment of key technological projects relating to Core Banking Upgrade & ADC products. Prior to Banking, he has served in UNDP, System 77 (Melbourne) and NADRA with diversified roles in Development, System Design, Account Management & Project Management. Mr. Adnan holds a Graduate Diploma in Information Technology & Bachelor of Computer Science from RMIT, Australia.
Muhammad Javed
Chief Compliance Officer
Mr. Javed brings nearly 18 years of diversified experience to the table with more than 13 years with microfinance banks in Pakistan. He has served in various capacities in the areas of internal control, compliance risk management and fraud risk management and currently serves as the Head of Compliance at U Microfinance Bank. Mr. Javed has been part of the founding team of U Microfinance bank and has played a critical in setting up U Microfinance Bank in 2012. Mr. Javed has worked for the likes of Khushaali Bank, Waseela Bank and Sapphire Fibers. He holds a post grad certification in management accounting as well as a Master in Business Administration.
Nabi Ahmad Chattha
National Sales Head- Assets
Nabi Ahmed Chattha’s career spans over 20 years. He is currently serving as National Sales Head- Assets and has been with U Bank since 2015. Mr. Chattah has served at HBL & Tameer Microfinance Bank and SME Bank at various levels. Mr.Chattha holds a MA and MBA degree.
Palwasha Qazi
Company Secretary & Head of Corporate Affairs
Ms. Palwasha Qazi has over ten years of experience in Corporate Affairs, Corporate and Strategic Communication, Regulatory Affairs, Governance, Policies and Procedures, Public Relation and Outreach.
Prior to joining U Microfinance bank Limited, she served at various organizations including Universal Service Fund – USF (Ministry of Information Technology and Telecom), Midas Communication , Online International News Network ( Magnates Communication).
Ms. Qazi is a Law Graduate and holds a Masters in International relations from Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad.
Sarmad Pretu
Chief Risk Officer
Mr. Sarmad Pretu carries a diverse experience in banking and finance spanning over 17 years. He started his career with Askari Bank Limited in 2002 and worked with the likes of ABN AMRO Bank Pakistan Limited, Faysal Bank Limited and The Bank of Punjab. He also worked at various levels at Pakistan Credit Rating Agency (PACRA) and JCR VIS Credit Rating Company Limited. He has worked on infrastructure project financing, corporate finance, commercial credits, investment banking, trade finance, risk management etc. He has also led various trainings at Institute of Bankers Pakistan Limited.
Mr. Sarmad Pretu has a Master’s in Business Administration from Bahria University and a Master of Applied Finance from University of Western Sydney – Australia.
Sharmeen Niaz
Head of Business & Customer Support
Ms. Sharmeen Niaz brings more than 17 years of diverse work experience in running global support operations for Multinationals. In her last role, Ms. Niaz worked as Director International Operations with 360training.com – a US based firm. Her areas of expertise is Operational Excellence in Support functions where she has championed in providing leadership and strategic guidance to successfully manage Business Process Outsourcing in Pakistan and Philippines. She has also managed 24/7 International Call Centre and has managed large scale projects of ADB and European Commission.
Ms. Niaz holds an MBA degree and is a trained Six Sigma Green Belt and ISO Internal Audit professional.
