AlBaraka Islamic Bank (AIB) has signed an agreement with GBM, an IBM Business Partner, for the provision of power system from IBM (NYSE:IBM) to support the core banking applications for its new venture in Pakistan.
Shafqaat Ahmed, Country Head Pakistan of AlBaraka Islamic Bank, said at the occasion, "We have chosen IBM for its world class hardware solutions, since we wanted to acquire state-of-the-art IT solutions as part of our decision to acquire a new core banking system and to support out bank's strategic growth objectives, involving conversion of our operations into a locally registered Islamic Bank in Pakistan over the next few weeks as per plans, paving the way for exponential growth in the network of our branches and customer outreach".
AlBaraka, a Bahrian-based Islamic bank, chose IBM Power Systems, one of the IBM's fastest growing products, specifically for its performance, scalability and stability, as the bank seeks to implement a core banking platform in order to provide a cost-effective, resilient and scalable platform for its new operations in Pakistan, he added.
"As AlBaraka extends its pioneering Islamic Banking services into Pakistan, the resilience and scalability of its core banking systems will be critical," says Humayun Bashir, Country General Manager of IBM Pakistan. "This agreement provides a sure foundation to enable AlBaraka to expand into the Pakistani market in a cost effective manner." -PR