KARACHI, 19 May 2015 – Bank Alfalahsigned an agreement with the Institute of Bankers, Pakistan (IBP)– one of the leading training institutionsfor the banking industry in Pakistan – for building capacity of the Bank’s human resources. Under the partnership, key learning initiatives will jointly be launched by IBP and Bank AlFalah.This first-of-its-kind arrangement between a Bank and IBP will offer special programmes designed for different branch banking positions.

KARACHI, 19 May 2015 – Bank Alfalahsigned an agreement with the Institute of Bankers, Pakistan (IBP)– one of the leading training institutionsfor the banking industry in Pakistan – for building capacity of the Bank’s human resources. Under the partnership, key learning initiatives will jointly be launched by IBP and Bank AlFalah.This first-of-its-kind arrangement between a Bank and IBP will offer special programmes designed for different branch banking positions.

Mr. Haroon Rasheed, CEO of IBP appreciated Bank Alfalah’s focus on developing its people and fast becoming a learning ground for young bankers. He said that it was imperative to improve the quality of bankers in Pakistan and that training and development had been recognized as a key challenge by the State Bank of Pakistan. “At IBP,we strive to provide quality capacity building opportunities for the banking industry in Pakistan. It is essential for banks to invest in enhancing the knowledge base and skills of their people,” he said.

Awards and shields were distributed among the employees who had completed different trainings, conducted by IBP. The senior management of Bank Alfalah and the Institute of Bankers were present at the signing ceremony.

Bank Alfalah focuses on providing learning and development opportunities to nurture talent. Almost 700 learning programmes catering to 8,400 employees were offered by the Bank last year. Nearly 100 Bank Alfalah employees, participated in various courses offered by IBP while over 300 employees, the highest number among all banks in Pakistan, took the IBP’s Superior Qualification (ISQ) testin 2014.

Note to the Editor:

About Bank Alfalah (www.bankalfalah.com):

Since its inception, Bank Alfalah has grown rapidly to become Pakistan’s fifth largest private bank, the largest issuer and acquirer of credit cards and one of the largest Islamic Banking businesses in the Country. The Bank has a network of 648 branches spanning more than 200 cities with presence in Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Bahrain in addition to a representative office in the UAE. The Bank serves more than 1 million corporate, retail, small business, agricultural, Islamic and asset financing customers.

About the Institute of Bankers, Pakistan (www.ibp.org.pk)

The Institute of Bankers Pakistan (IBP) is Pakistan’s only recognized Institute dedicated to providing technical training services for the banking industry in the country. Established in 1951 with the technical support and partnership of the Institute of Bankers (UK), IBP is a not-for-profit entity incorporated under the Companies Ordinance 1984. At the time of inception, the IBP was formed with the sole purpose of administering the banking diploma program, earlier known as the DAIBP program, which has now been revised and renamed to the IBP Superior Qualification (ISQ) certification. Over time, IBP’s scope of activities has significantly broadened and apart from offering and conducting the ISQ certification. IBP aims to provide a strong technical training platform for on-going personal growth and a reliable yardstick for assessing the quality and depth of knowledge and skills acquired. The breadth of training, education and professional development programs at the Institute cover all major banking disciplines including: operations, branch banking, consumer, credit, risk, compliance, governance, Islamic Banking, SME, microfinance etc. The Institute caters to the needs of the industry professionals and its members as well as prospective entrants of the banking industry.