The launch signals U Bank’s renewed commitment to keep innovation at the heart of all its efforts and performing cutting-edge research to push the entire ecosystem forward.
Date: 5th March, 2020
Islamabad: U Microfinance Bank Ltd. officially launched its Innovation Centre at the bank’s head office. As the bank enters the new decade, this space will serve as the base of operations for innovation related partnerships, and product and service design research. The center’s overlying objective is to keep a pulse on upcoming disruptions and technology breakthroughs and design programs, pilots and/or tests to help serve the bank’s triple bottom line of people, planet and profits in more innovative ways. Furthermore, the center will also be responsible for producing regular internal and external research, working papers and articles as it works towards a more financially inclusive Pakistan.
The center will especially be looking at leveraging partnerships within the startup ecosystem to help co-create and scale solutions that help disrupt the financial ecosystem. U Bank’s approach is unique in the sense that it seeks to go beyond just collaborating with FinTech (financial technology) startups, and will also look to partner with social impact driven startups. Considering that a bulk of the bank’s loan portfolio is within the agriculture and livestock sector, the team will be focusing especially on innovations within that space. Other key sectors of interest include renewable energy, environment, livelihood creation and health.
“Innovation is a part of U Bank’s DNA and one of our core values. Being a triple bottom line company focused on people, planet and profits, we are on a continuous mission of self-reflection and relearning to improve our product and services and the lives of those we serve,” said Kabeer Naqvi, CEO & President U Bank. “With our work under this new center we will be doubling our efforts to ensure that we bank the unbanked population of Pakistan and those at the last mile”.
