Ministry of Finance has been requested to release Rs 600 million to the First Women Bank Limited (FWBL) so that it could meet the minimum capital requirement which in turn would improve its rating. Sources said that President and Chief Executive Officer of the Bank Tahir Raza has stated in a brief to the Senate Standing Committee on Finance that the bank was facing the problem of inadequate capital requirement and consequently its rating and business are being impacted.
She said that of finance ministry releases the remaining Rs 600 million from Rs 1 billion approved by Finance Ministry, before end of December 2015 would help the bank meet minimum capital requirement of Rs 3 billion. So far Ministry of Finance has released only two tranches of Rs 200 million each to the bank. The inadequate capital requirement adversely affects bank's rating and business growth.
The President of the bank maintains that due to lack of inadequate capital, First Women Bank Limited is unable to serve the rural markets. The bank is operating with 42 branches and all are located in urban areas. As far as opening of branches in rural areas is concerned, according to the bank, there is also a matter of capacity as setting up branches in rural areas requires local experience women bankers, which is another constraint. Currently, the bank is focusing on targeting the rural and urban suburbs through mobile banking services and e-marketing, again in the absence of adequate capital. FWBL is collaborating with various funding agencies to seek their support.
The bank president also blamed provincial governments of promoting an unhealthy competition by asking their departments to keep their funds in provincial bank. She said that First Women Bank's entry into the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) programme will also help the bank connect with its beneficiaries and introduce 'ASAAN' account and other financial products to support financial inclusion.
The meeting was also informed that Finance Division has appointed three Directors for the term of three years through issuance of the notifications however, none of them has so far joined. As regards to additional requirement of enhancement of capital to Rs 10 billion, she stated that the finance secretary suggested discussing the same in the meeting with finance minister, provided FWBL comes up with business projections, and possible avenues for such funding. The presentation was already submitted on 16.10.2015 and the meeting call is awaited, the meeting was informed.
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