One of Pakistan’s largest financial institutions, Faysal Bank Limited (FBL) has launched a digital payments solution through a partnership with US-based Ripple, a blockchain-based money transfer platform.
https://twitter.com/faysalbankltd/status/1169874364218494977
FBL is one of Pakistan’s largest commercial banks with over 220 branches nationwide and assets totaling $1.5 billion.
Announced on September 6, 2019, FBL’s partnership with Ripple was commemorated by a meeting in Karachi, Pakistan’s leading industrial and financial center. The business meeting was attended by Faysal Bank’s president Yousaf Hussain.
FBL, an Islamic private bank, has joined more than 200 financial institutions and payment providers that are using RippleNet, a decentralized global payments network for conducting fast and cost-effective cross-border transactions.
The leading Pakistani bank has reportedly been working on various initiatives aimed at supporting the development of a digital economy. FBL notably became the first major private Pakistani bank to introduce a virtual payment card in Pakistan in 2017.
FBL recently sponsored a one-day summit focused on electronic payments in Karachi, in order to spread “mass awareness about digital money.”
Pakistan’s regulatory authorities have not drafted guidelines for transactions involving cryptocurrencies. In 2018, the country’s central bank, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), ordered all local financial institutions to suspend services being offered to individuals and firms dealing in Bitcoin and other digital assets.
Details regarding Ripple’s partnership with FBL have not yet been released.
