HBL, Pakistan’s largest bank network, reiterated its commitment to enabling dreams by handing out loans to the farming community under the Electronic Warehouse Receipt Financing (EWRF) for maize crops.
Earlier, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) launched the EWRF system in District Kasur. SBP Governor Dr. Raza Baqir, Deputy Governor Seema Kamil, Chairman Nemat Collateral Abrar Hassan, Chairman SECP Amir Khan, Chief Secretary Punjab Kamran Ali Afzal and other government officials, presidents of banks, heads of corporate corporations related to agriculture, farmers were also present on the occasion.
At the event, HBL, which is also the pioneer of EWRF in Pakistan, handed out a loan to one of its clients. Speaking at the occasion, Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL stated that improvements in agriculture will directly impact Pakistan’s economy.
Read more: HBL and Agro Digital partner to promote financial inclusion through Agro-based Development Finance
“HBL is the pioneer of the Electronic Warehouse Receipt Financing in Pakistan. This initiative led by the SBP resonates with our mission to strengthen the farming community and our vision of financial inclusion in the country,” he further added.
#HBL is the pioneer of Electronic Warehouse Receipt Financing (EWRF) in #Pakistan. In line with the Bank’s vision of enabling dreams, one of the HBL clients received a loan for the EWRF today at the launch event held at Tehsil Chunian, Punjab. @StateBank_Pak pic.twitter.com/lO5Qm7B5lY
— HBL (@HBLPak) February 22, 2022
https://twitter.com/HBLPak/status/1496029901094363137?s=20&t=eQ5OOKytMhRKuZ0CUInHDA
Before the EWRF, farmers were often forced to sell their crops at lower prices during the harvesting season. Farmers did this due to the unavailability of storage facilities and to meet their pressing cash requirements. However, with the availability of EWRF, they can easily meet their financing needs from banks.
As a result, HBL also signed agreements with Naymat Collateral Company Limited. The agreement aims to promote farm credit under the initiative of the newly developed system of EWRF. Important to note, HBL previously took major initiatives to help the farming community of Pakistan.
Read more: HBL partners with GROWTECH to support farmers in Pakistan
HBL’s strategic alliance with BaKhabar Kissan
Apart from easing farmers’ financial burdens, HBL also strongly campaigns for a tech revolution in Pakistan’s agriculture sector. In this regard, last year, HBL entered into a strategic alliance with BaKhabar Kissan. BaKhabar Kissan is a leading agriculture technology company engaged in building the capacity of farmers, operative in Pakistan.
Through this collaboration, farmers registered with HBL Development Finance will have access to a multitude of services offered by BaKhabar Kissan, including agro-met and livestock advisory, weather forecasts, disaster alerts, crop health monitoring through satellite imagery, and an automatic weather station.
Read more: HBL & BaKhabar Kissan to revolutionize Pakistan’s agro-economy
The collaboration provides HBL Development Finance, the opportunity to deepen its market penetration as it continues its strategic initiative of broad-based financial inclusion and contribution to the agri value chain in the country.