KARACHI: The State Bank has directed four leading banks to open nine centres with a network of 54 mobile banking units by the end of October 1968, it was learnt yesterday [Sept 24]. The suggestion for mobile banks in rural areas, it may be recalled, was made by President Ayub Khan in a meeting with bankers in Karachi last month.

A survey is also being carried out by the Central and scheduled banks to study deposit potentials in other areas. More centres will be opened when these studies are completed.

Eight centres will be opened in West Pakistan, two each by Habib Bank, United Bank, the National Bank of Pakistan and Muslim Commercial Bank. National Bank will also set up one centre in East Pakistan.

The centres will be located at Campbellpur [Attock], Nawabshah, Mardan, Sahiwal, Gujran­wala, Lahore, Sialkot, Lyallpur [Faisalabad] and Khulna. Six villages will be served by each centre.

Under the rural banking scheme, each bank will set up three types of branches in the villages: (a) the permanent branch (b) the satellite branch and (c) the mobile banking unit.

Published in Dawn, September 25th, 2018