Meezan Bank manages Rapid Branch Expansion by implementing Temenos Transact Core Banking Platform

Meezan Bank is currently using Transact Release 8 and the IT department’s next big project is an upgrade to Release 12 on the new Temenos Enterprise Frameworks Architecture (TEFA) platform.

Meezan Bank first ran T24 Release 5 in 2006 to acquire the treasury functionality. Having signed an agreement with Temenos and NdcTech in March 2007, the bank implemented T24 Release 8 for core banking.

The first branch went live in May 2009 and a staged roll-out followed, which took two years to complete. Most branches were connected by the end of 2011 and a final 23 branches have been rolled out in 2012. The bank has two types of branches. The first offers a full range of services, trade finance, treasury, financing and retail. The second services the deposit product alone. A new concept, the smart branch, is also being trialed.

Benefits to bank

Meezan Bank believes that the TEFA platform is an opportunity for Temenos to develop generic functionality for Islamic banking. The Bank has worked with NdcTech and Temenos to develop Shariah-compliant financial products, including long-term capital, commercial and structural for large corporations and government, which were not available in the Islamic banking module. The bank has been successful in creating a wide range of Islamic banking financial products. Meezan Bank’s dedication to Islamic banking has made it a leader and it is being called upon to provide consulting services internationally. It is also entering into partnerships with banks in other countries that share the same vision of establishing a viable Islamic banking system. The rapid rollout of comprehensive integrated core banking solution allows the bank to have advanced architecture that improves overall performance of the large branch network. It enables the bank to have Out-of-the-box Islamic banking functionality and provides support from local partners and Temenos for development of Islamic banking products.

The advanced system will enable the bank to build smart branches with lean staff team in the front office and will be equipped with very smart technology solutions such as interactive kiosks offering ease and personalized services to the customers.