ABHI Microfinance Bank Ltd. has entered into a strategic partnership with Dastak Logistics (Private) Limited to introduce Merchant Lending Services aimed at supporting small and medium-sized businesses across Pakistan with easier access to working capital and business financing.

The agreement was formalized at a signing ceremony where Muhammad Umer Rauf, Head Transaction & Employee Banking – ABHI Microfinance Bank, and Intizar Hussain, Chief Executive Officer – Dastak Logistics, signed on behalf of their respective organizations. The ceremony was also attended by senior representatives from both institutions.

Under this partnership, eligible merchants operating within Dastak Logistics’ ecosystem will gain access to tailored financing solutions from Abhi MFB. These facilities are designed to help businesses manage cash flow needs, purchase inventory, expand operations, and strengthen day-to-day working capital without lengthy traditional banking processes.

The collaboration addresses one of the biggest challenges faced by SMEs and merchants in Pakistan — limited access to timely and convenient financing. By leveraging Dastak Logistics’ merchant network and operational data, Abhi MFB aims to create a seamless lending journey with faster assessments, simplified onboarding, and quicker disbursement of funds.

For merchants, this initiative is expected to unlock growth opportunities by providing flexible capital when needed most. Better financing access can enable businesses to stock products efficiently, fulfill larger orders, improve delivery capabilities, and scale operations with greater confidence.

For the broader financial ecosystem, the partnership contributes to Pakistan’s financial inclusion agenda by extending formal credit solutions to underserved merchants and businesses. It also reflects the growing importance of embedded finance models, where lending services are integrated directly into commercial ecosystems to create more relevant and accessible solutions.

Representatives from both organizations shared that empowering merchants with financing tools is critical for supporting entrepreneurship, improving economic productivity, and accelerating digital transformation across Pakistan’s SME sector.

With this collaboration, Abhi MFB continues to strengthen its commitment to merchant-focused financial services, while Dastak Logistics expands value-added support for businesses within its growing network, creating a stronger foundation for long-term business growth nationwide.

United Bank Limited (UBL) has successfully completed a large-scale core banking data migration with AUTON8 in six months, transitioning data from Ex-Silkbank’s Temenos T24 core banking system to UBL’s Symbols platform.

The program encompassed customer accounts records across 105 branches and was executed with zero critical data loss within six months, ensuring complete accuracy, reconciliation, and uninterrupted operational continuity.

The initiative addressed significant technical challenges, including high-volume data processing within restricted banking windows, complex mapping across account structures, branch codes, customer identifiers, and GL/symbol hierarchies, as well as the remediation of legacy data quality issues. To accelerate repeatable conversion cycles and reduce cutover risk, AUTON8 utilised MORPH to configure governed transformation logic between source and target structures, enabling the rapid refinement of mapping rules across dry runs with consistent outcomes carried into the final migration.

Sohail Aziz, Chief Information and Digital Officer at UBL, said: “Executing a migration of this scale required precision, strong governance, and absolute confidence in data integrity. The program was delivered through disciplined planning, multiple validation cycles, and minimal operational disruption. This successful outcome strengthens our core banking foundation and supports UBL’s long-term objectives around stability, scalability, and digital modernization.”

Farasat Ali Naqvi, EVP Core Banking at UBL, added: “The successful completion of this migration within 6 months represents a significant milestone for UBL. AUTON8 MORPH proved to be a game-changer for us — with its no-code, governed and traceable transformation approach made it possible to deliver this outcome at speed. AUTON8’s structured execution ensured data integrity, minimized operational risk and enabled a smooth post-migration transition.”

 Ali Raza, Chief Operating Officer at AUTON8, said:  “This project reflects AUTON8’s strength in delivering mission-critical banking transformations under tight timelines. Migrating customer records across 105 branches between two entirely different core banking systems, while ensuring zero critical data loss, demonstrates our automation-led execution and deep banking domain expertise. AUTON8 MORPH—our no-code transformation platform—enabled governed, fully traceable mapping and conversion at scale, which is how we delivered within such a compressed timeframe.”

The successful delivery of this project reinforces AUTON8’s position as a trusted transformation partner for large-scale banking data migrations, enabling financial institutions to modernize core platforms while safeguarding accuracy, resilience, and customer continuity.

It is pertinent to mention here the merger of the United Bank Limited and Silk Bank took place last year under the supervision of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

ABHI, the region’s neo bank of the future, and Mahaana Wealth, the country’s first digital-only asset management company licensed by the SECP, have joined hands to make financial empowerment accessible for every employee.

Through this collaboration, both organizations will work together to leverage their financial products and bring innovative solutions to a wider market. By aligning their expertise, ABHI and Mahaana aim to drive financial wellness, inclusion, and literacy across businesses and communities.

This partnership underscores ABHI and Mahaana’s shared commitment to empowering individuals and organizations through accessible, technology-driven financial solutions. By working together, both companies aim to build a culture of financial inclusion and literacy, promoting stronger and more resilient workplaces.

“Financial empowerment is about more than access; it’s about helping people feel in control of their money and their future,” said Omair Ansari, Co-founder & CEO, ABHI. “Our partnership with Mahaana reflects our shared mission to build financially healthier workplaces where employees can take control of both their short-term liquidity and long-term goals.”

“Financial empowerment means bridging the gap between immediate needs and long-term security,” said Shamoon Tariq, Founder & CEO, Mahaana Wealth. “Our partnership with ABHI does exactly that helping employees manage their cash flow today while building their retirement tomorrow. With only 50,000 retirement accounts in a country of 240 million people, making wealth-building accessible through the workplace isn’t just good business, it’s essential infrastructure.”

Financial empowerment is about creating a strong link between meeting today’s financial pressures and securing a stable future. The partnership with ABHI achieves this by giving employees practical tools to manage short-term cash flow challenges while simultaneously encouraging long-term retirement savings.

In a country of 240 million people where only around 50,000 retirement accounts exist, expanding access to wealth-building opportunities through the workplace is not merely a smart business decision—it is a critical step toward building inclusive financial infrastructure and long-term economic resilience.

Farooq Rashid, Chief Executive Officer, LOLC Microfinance Bank, and Asif Ahmad, Group Chief Business Solutions Officer, PTCL & Ufone 4G, signed the agreement at a ceremony in Islamabad. The signing was witnessed by senior executives from LOLC Microfinance Bank, including Ilsam Awfer, Chief Operating Officer, Nizar Ali Momnani, Chief Commercial Officer, and Faraz Basheer, Head of IT, along with PTCL & Ufone 4G executives Haseeb Hashmi, Group Director Enterprise Solutions, and Syed Imran Ali Bukhari, Group Vice President Strategy and Product Management.

On the occasion, Farooq Rashid, Chief Executive Officer, LOLC Microfinance Bank, said, “We are pleased to sign this agreement with PTCL as our trusted partner for infrastructure as a Service at PTCL Smart Cloud. This partnership signifies a transformative step forward in the Microfinance Bank’s approach to infrastructure, platforms, and data management. By leveraging PTCL’s data center and telecommunications expertise, LOLC aims to achieve an enhanced and reliable operating leverage and reduced time-to-market of products and services.”

During the signing ceremony, Asif Ahmad, Group Chief Business Solutions Officer, PTCL & Ufone 4G, said, “We are pleased to sign an agreement with LOLC Micro Finance Bank to support them in fulfilling their business needs. PTCL, being a national company, is leading the digitalisation effort across the country. Through such partnerships, PTCL continues to play its key role in the development of telecom infrastructure by providing innovative and secure solutions to the corporate sector that will further contribute towards the overall economic growth of the country.”

PTCL endeavours to provide best-in-class services to its corporate customers across various industries in Pakistan. This agreement is part of the growth momentum across diverse areas of ICT and Security Solutions, which is key to Pakistan’s digital banking ecosystem.

This landmark recognition highlights the central role of 1LINK in Pakistan’s payment ecosystem, entrusted with ensuring the integrity, stability, and interoperability of the country’s digital financial infrastructure.

The DPS status further enhances 1LINK’s responsibility to ensure resilience and security in payments, while also enabling it to expand its role in innovation and business growth.

As a Designated Payment System (DPS), 1LINK will continue to work closely with SBP, financial institutions, and fintechs to strengthen consumer confidence and drive the shift toward a more inclusive and digitally connected economy. The DPS status further enhances 1LINK’s responsibility to ensure resilience and security in payments, while allowing it to further expand its interests in innovation and business growth.

We extend our sincere gratitude to SBP for their confidence and trust, to our member banks and customers, to the payments industry at large, and to staff and our Board of Directors for their unwavering support. This achievement truly belongs to all of them, the statement issued by the 1Link said.

This move marked a significant step in strengthening Pakistan’s financial infrastructure, as 1LINK plays a critical role in the country’s payment ecosystem by operating the interbank network.

It enables ATM transactions, bill payments, fund transfers, and other digital financial services.

1LINK (Pvt) Limited, owned by a consortium of 11 banks, is the country’s first PSO/PSP and now the first Designated PSO/PSP and the largest switch and payment system, providing a host of valuable online banking services like ATM switching, 1BILL billing platform, Inter Bank Funds Transfer, Fraud Risk Management, Switch Dispute Resolution, International Payment Schemes, PayPak – Domestic Payment Scheme, Sohni Dharti Remittance Program, etc. ILINK is continuously evolving and adding new products and services to benefit the financial industry.