LAHORE - UBL has joined hands with the Government of Punjab for the provision of subsidised loans to small farmers under government’s ‘Empowerment of Kissan Through Digital & Financial Inclusion’ facility.

A signing ceremony was held on 20 April 2017 at the Ministers Block, Government of Punjab Secretariat, Lahore. The participants at the signing ceremony included Ayesha Ghaus Pasha, Finance Minister of Punjab; Muhammad Mahmood, Punjab Secretary of Agriculture; Kamran Bakhshi, Additional Director of SBP Agri-Credit and Microfinance Department; Zia Ijaz, Group Executive for Retail Bank, UBL and Chaudhry Qaiser Iqbal, Head of Rural Bank (UBL).

The primary focus of this ‘e-Kissan Farm Credit Facility’ is empowerment of ‘small farmers’ through provision of financial and digital services. This helps support the cause of financial inclusion of rural masses. In line with UBL’s Progressive and Innovative brand attributes, this initiative makes UBL the first commercial bank in the private sector to enter into this agreement. With its wide network comprising over 45,000 touch points including more than 1375 branches, this agreement allows UBL to facilitate the farming community. The arrangements help in uplifting the rural economy and catering to financial needs of the underserved by leveraging the latest technological advances available in the financial sector.