KARACHI: The board of directors of Bank Alfalah Ltd has approved a fund amounting to $10 million (Rs2.18 billion) for flood relief efforts in Pakistan.

Bank Alfalah chairman Sheikh Nahayan bin Mubarak Al Nahayan has pledged the amount to help with the extensive aid and rescue work required across the country.

Bank Alfalah president and CEO Atif Bajwa thanked Sheikh Nahayan and the board for their generous support.

The amount will be distributed for the flood relief activities including donations through selected NGOs and organisations to provide immediate relief and a substantial amount will be earmarked for infrastructure rebuilding in the medium- to long-term to help the affected areas attain normalcy.

NBP to provide potable water in affected areas

Meanwhile, the National Bank has announced Rs50 million for Prime Minister’s Flood Relief Fund and decided to fight waterborne diseases by providing clean drinking water on a large scale in affected areas.

NBP CEO and President Rehmat Ali Hasnie on Wednesday said that NBP had also launched a digital payments platform enabling people across the globe and within Pakistan to donate using their preferred payment method.

Also, the NBP in collaboration with Thardeep Microfinance Foundation and Rural Community Development Programme has stepped up to provide immediate aid to the vulnerable communities by providing water purifiers, developed by PakVitae, to provide flood-affected households access to clean drinking water.

Meezan Bank launches POS

The bank will act as a link between merchants, issuers and payment networks by offering them state-of-the-art POS machines and making cashless transactions available over the counters, enabling retailers to benefit from the adoption of digital payments. The POS machines support acceptance of local and international cards, card and mobile tap payments and integration with the retailer system.

Meezan Bank has launched Point-of-Sale (POS) payment and online payment gateway services to further enhance its digital retail offering and fast-track the country’s digital ecosystem.

Published in Dawn, September 8th, 2022