Pakistan’s Meezan Bank inks deal with BPC Banking Technologies

By Edil Corneille

BPC Banking Technologies, a provider of digital payment solutions, has partnered with Pakistan’s Meezan Bank to deliver a digital transformation agenda starting with the upgrade of the payment infrastructure. BPC’s SmartVista platform has been selected by Meezan to deliver issuing and acquiring services for the bank.

The Islamic bank is said to have over 800 branches and a presence in more than 240 cities. With the COVID-19 pandemic driving rapid adoption of digital services and the fast growth of e-commerce in Pakistan, Meezan Bank is expected to foresee massive growth in channels and transaction volume. The bank’s move to invest in its digital payment infrastructure forms a part of its strategy to support both consumers and businesses during these challenging times.

Faizur Rehman, Group Head of Information Technology and Digital Banking at Meezan Bank said, “Pakistan has seen massive growth in its digital payment market, driven by the shift to go digital during the Covid-19 pandemic. We need to have the right digital payment infrastructure in place to offer new payment experiences to consumers, as well as payment acceptance capabilities to companies. Leveraging BPC’s years of expertise and its robust solutions will help us adapt to these changes fast. We are confident that by combining the latest technology with our product offering, we can deliver excellent customer experience in this fast-moving landscape.”

BPC’s SmartVista Switch solution will be used by Meezan Bank to manage the authorisation of payment transactions in real-time, across all channels. With an aim to provide frictionless digital banking and payment experience for its customers, the bank will rely on the solution’s instant routing of payment transactions. Using BPC’s SmartVista Card Management and Issuing solution, Meezan Bank will also strengthen the delivery of new payment instruments to its customers mainly used upon account opening, while also offering a more secure e-commerce experience.

Angelo Bertini, SVP Managing Director, Middle East, Africa and South East Asia at BPC said, “As we increasingly shift to a digital-first economy; payment switches, management of merchant services and fraud prevention have become incredibly important to enable seamless digital transactions. At BPC, we know flexibility and the ability to scale are paramount to create a solution that can adapt with Pakistan’s electronic payment landscape. We look forward to continuing to support Meezan Bank as it navigates this exciting time in digital payments in Pakistan.”