Page 19 - CMA Journal (July-August 2025)

Exclusive Interview

ICMA: Based on your experience at Paymob and NIFT,
what do you see as the biggest challenges and
opportunities in Pakistan’s digital financial services? In markets like Pakistan, where

Fawad A. Kader: Pakistan’s digital financial ecosystem cost pressures are high and
sits at a critical inflection point. On one hand, there are operational inefficiencies can
significant challenges that continue to slow
progress—such as fragmented infrastructure, limited limit digital scale, RPA provides a
interoperability between systems, low levels of financial
literacy among users, and a lack of unified strategic unique advantage: it enables
direction across stakeholders. Too often, we also see institutions to expand capacity
efforts focused on perceived problems or cosmetic
innovation rather than addressing foundational issues without linearly increasing their
like user onboarding, trust, and merchant enablement. workforce or infrastructure
However, despite these challenges, the opportunity is
enormous.
Pakistan has a large population outside the formal In markets like Pakistan, where cost pressures are high
financial system, growing smartphone and internet and operational inefficiencies can limit digital scale, RPA
penetration, and a young population eager to engage provides a unique advantage: it enables institutions to
with digital tools. Add to that the policy momentum expand capacity without linearly increasing their
driven by the State Bank of Pakistan—with initiatives like workforce or infrastructure. For example, banks can
Raast and frameworks for digital banks—and the onboard thousands of customers digitally while keeping
conditions for transformation are stronger than ever. compliance turnaround times within minutes rather
than hours or days.
The real opportunity lies in building locally relevant,
problem-first solutions that are simple, trusted, and Beyond efficiency, the real value lies in freeing up human
scalable. This means going beyond payments and capital to focus on more strategic and creative
wallets to solve real business and consumer pain tasks—like improving customer experience, innovating
points—whether that’s digitizing small merchants, products, or driving growth initiatives. This shift from
enabling micro-credit for underserved populations, or labor-intensive operations to smart, technology-enabled
automating compliance for fintechs and banks. What’s workflows is essential for long-term scalability and
needed now is alignment across the ecosystem—banks, competitiveness.
fintechs, regulators, and investors—to drive forward
In the MENAP region, where many institutions are
innovation that’s inclusive, sustainable, and tailored to simultaneously undergoing digital transformation and
Pakistan’s unique context.
expansion into underserved segments, automation
ICMA: How can automation tools like Robotic Process helps bridge the operational gap—allowing digital
Automation (RPA) help banks and businesses become strategies to succeed not just in design but in execution.
more efficient in Pakistan and the MENAP region? Ultimately, RPA is not just a cost-cutting tool—it’s an
enabler of scale, resilience, and customer-centric agility.
Fawad A. Kader: RPA holds transformational potential When combined with AI and analytics, it becomes a
for banks and businesses across Pakistan and the MENAP foundational layer for truly intelligent operations.
region—especially in an environment where operational
capacity, speed, and accuracy are critical but resources ICMA: In your view, what makes a digital payment
are often stretched. At its core, RPA allows organizations solution successful in a market like Pakistan?
to automate repetitive, rules-based tasks that typically Fawad A. Kader: Success in Pakistan’s digital payment
consume large amounts of human effort—such as
landscape doesn’t come from flashy features or quick
compliance checks, data entry, customer onboarding, launches—it comes from getting the fundamentals
reconciliations, reporting, and service desk operations.
right. In my experience, there are four core pillars that
These are areas where errors are common, timelines are determine whether a solution can scale and sustain:
tight and scale is hard to manage manually.
simplicity, trust, ubiquity, and patient capital.

ICMA’s Chartered Management Accountant, Jul-Aug 2025 17