ISLAMABAD: National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) has awarded the mandate for the deployment of Point-of-Sale (POS) terminals to HBL for the acceptance of credit and debit cards at Nadra Centres across the country. These POS terminals are being deployed at all Nadra Centres on the directives and recommendation of Government of Pakistan and State Bank of Pakistan.

The agreement in this regard was signed between Tariq Malik, Chairman - Nadra and Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO - HBL. Senior officials from both the organizations were also present on the occasion.

Speaking on the occasion, Tariq Malik, Chairman - Nadra said that installing POS Terminals at our NRCs would allow payment through debit and credit cards. Nadra Centres across the country have a massive public footfall every day and digitalizing payment systems would allow the citizens to have multiple payment options, offering them an easy and secure mode of payment while pivoting towards a Digital Pakistan, he said.

He also stated that adoption of POS Terminals at the NRCs offers accounting efficiency and accuracy. He said that the NRCs will now be accepting more currencies as the applicants are often overseas Pakistanis with foreign bank accounts and payment cards. Through this partnership, HBL will be deploying its POS terminals at all Nadra Centres nationwide. This initiative is pivotal towards improving Pakistan’s digital infrastructure, enabling HBL to play its part in supporting Nadra to digitalize its identification systems at large. It will allow applicants at Nadra to have multiple payment options by offering them ease and convenience of service.

Commenting on the occasion, Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO – HBL said, “We are delighted to be awarded this mandate. HBL and Nadra have a longstanding relationship, spanning over many years. HBL as the Government of Pakistan’s primary bank, has implemented many strategic programs in partnership with Nadra to bring convenience and ease for the public. This partnership furthers HBL’s strategic priority of promoting digitalization across the country.”

Nadra remains a key stakeholder for HBL, as it provides both Verisys and biometric verification systems, allowing banks and other financial institutions to verify the credentials of their clients at the time of account opening and conducting transactions.

HBL continues to be the main account/collection bank for Nadra Registration Centrews including more than 600 operational accounts opened across various branches of the bank.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021