Meet the 1LINK Board of Directors: the Chairman, Nominee Directors & Independent Directors from
leading banks (listed alphabetically), and the CEO of 1LINK
Mr. Abrar Mir is the Chief Information & Transformation Officer at HBL. He is responsible for delivering the Digital, Data and Inclusion agenda of the Bank. He has a proven track record of taking a concept from ideation to strategy, execution and ramp up across a range of functions and businesses in multiple organizations. Mr. Abrar is a thoughtfully innovative, strategic, and creative thinker with a strong “entrepreneurial” outlook. He has a keen interest in finding ways to leverage the evolving digital technology to significantly expand financial inclusion in a financially viable and sustainable manner.
Mr. Abrar has expertise in developing, deploying and positioning innovative and large-scale Digital, Mobile, Internet, G2P & B2B banking solutions while managing risk, AML and compliance issues. He has also led his organization to win many Global awards including those from GSMA, Global Finance, IDC etc. Mr. Abrar Mir has been a regular guest speaker on Digital payments and Mobile Banking at various international forums including the likes of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, GSMA, EBRD, UNDP, FI 2020 by Accion, CGAP, DFID, SEEP etcHe holds a Bachelors in Electrical Engineering and an MBA from USA and has more than 24 years of diverse industry and functional experience within and outside Pakistan
Mr. Mujahid Ali has diversified experience in the areas of Business Process Reengineering, IT Planning & Development, Project Management, Systems Implementation, and Team Building, with acquired experience of over 30 years across manufacturing and financial sectors. He has done his MBA in Finance and holds various IT certifications through Executive Programs from LUMS and Wharton Business School, Pennsylvania, USA.
Mr. Mujahid became part of Allied Bank in 2008 and successfully transformed ABL’s “Conventional Legacy Banking Systems” into ”Robust IT Systems” with Temenos T24 as the Core Banking System along with other peripheral systems and setting-up of the IT infrastructure and Data Centre.
Mr. Zahid Afzal is a seasoned banker having diversified experience of almost 30 years serving in Bank AL Habib, Bank Alfalah and currently in Askari Bank since 2003 where he is heading the Operations Group. His expertise in banking operations, drive for taking technology-based initiatives for augmenting control regimen, coupled with his management acumen are his strong suits.He has played a key role in strategizing the transforming of the Bank by way of replacing the legacy system and migrating bank-wide portfolio to a centralized Core Banking System.
Mr. Mohib is a result-driven leader with a successful history in developing focused strategies in information technology for business value realization by engraving a culture for agile and continuous improvements while transforming raw talent pool into high-performing teams. He has over 30 years of experience in the Financial Industry with a deep understanding of the banking business and technology trends at the global level.
Mr. Mohib has been a change agent for business-IT alignment, defining technology vision, digital transformation, innovation, and operational excellence. He has a strong passion for working on new ideas, concepts and new ways of doing things and has led numerous successful initiatives within the areas of High-performance Infrastructure & Networks, Resilient Solution Architecture, Big Data and Analytics, Digitization & Process Automation, Agile product development with Kaizen management, Enterprise Information Security Architecture and IT Service Management.
Mr. Aneeq Malik is a solutions-focused banker with over 19 years of rich experience overseeing compliance functions and branch operations. Prior to joining Faysal Bank Limited, he has been associated with banks such as ABN AMRO and MCB. Mr. Aneeq is recognized for being both reactive to developments in the regulatory and governance environment and proactive in areas related to compliance education and training. Highly adept in identifying gaps and/or risk exposure in operations as well as developing and implementing strong systems of checks and balances.
Mr. Aneeq Malik holds a graduation degree from Punjab University, Lahore. He is a certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist from ACAMS, a certified expert in Corporate Governance & Leadership Skills from Pakistan Institute of Corporate Governance (PICG) and also certified from NIBAF in Islamic Banking. He is on the Board of Directors of 1LINK (Pvt.) Ltd., as a nominee director from Faysal Bank Limited.
Mr. Hammad Khalid is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (“ICAP”) and carries quantifiable experience in the financial control environment. He carries over 16 years of experience with MCB Bank with Financial Reporting, Taxation, Budgeting & Strategy and Investor Relations falling under his purview. He has represented MCB Bank Limited at various national and global forums and has played an instrumental role in the growth of the institution. Before joining MCB Bank, he has worked with M/s A.F. Ferguson & Company, Chartered Accountants. Mr. Khalid serves on the BOD of MCB Islamic Bank and MCB Azerbaijan NBCO as non-executive director.
Mr. Salman Ali carries over 27+ years of international and local experience in the field of IT. As a summary, his experience revolves around Project Management, IT Solutions & Consultancy, Training & Education and ERP Development along with other industry specific Enterprise applications. He is currently the Chief Information Officer at Soneri Bank Limited where he is working closely with the President & CEO, Deputy CEO and Group Heads to achieve company goals in best possible way using industry best practice & technology solutions.Mr. Salman has experience of building and leading high performance team(s) to deliver complex technology solutions. He provides vision, leadership and governance through planning, dynamic solution designing and strategic decision making.
Ms. Saadya has been associated with Standard Chartered for 17 years. Prior to being appointed as Head of CPBB for Pakistan, she has held several key management positions with the bank and for the past five years she has led Affluent Client Segments, at a global level based out of Singapore. Previously she has worked in the Africa & Middle East Region (AME), as the Regional & Country Head of Segments, AME and UAE, and as Country Head Wealth Management, Priority and International Banking for Pakistan.Ms. Saadya is passionate about setting up new business models, exploring digitization of product solutions and their delivery models to grow revenues, drive efficiency and deliver a superior client experience. Her diverse experience in Consumer Banking allows her to build successful businesses through strategizing and collaborative interactions with internal and external clients. She enjoys building teams and helping team members excel in their careers.
Ms. Saadya has been recognized for a number of key achievements within SCB and the industry, some of which include Global Launch of Premium Banking in 12 key markets, responsible for formulating the Strategy and Design for the Affluent branch network in 11 markets and launching the Wealth Management & Premium Banking Segment for one of the largest local banks in Pakistan.She has participated as a panelist and speaker in numerous international Industry Talks and Publications on topics including Women Leadership and Development Programs, Culture and Wealth Management.Ms. Saadya holds an MBA in Finance from the Institute of Business Administration, IBA-Karachi and is also a Sustainability Champion at the Bank. She has a keen interest in pursuing wholistic wellness and is an avid reader and traveler.
Mr. Sohail Aziz is an accomplished Chief Information Officer with a track record of driving digital transformation and innovation in the banking industry. Currently serving as the Chief Information Officer at United Bank Limited and having previously held key roles at Allied Bank Limited. Mr. Sohail brings over two decades of experience in leading strategic initiatives.
Mr. Sohail possesses a master’s degree in computer science from the prestigious University of Chicago Booth in the USA, showcasing a robust academic background. Additionally, he has earned a Specialization Certificate in Digital Transformation from the Copenhagen Business School. Mr. Sohail’s expertise in IT strategy, information security, and software systems has been instrumental in optimizing operations, enhancing customer experiences, and maximizing ROI for leading financial institutions. His leadership and dedication to staff development have consistently delivered ambitious technology objectives, making him a prominent figure in the industry.
Ms. Nausheen Ahmad is Barrister at Law with over 30 years of law firm and in house counsel experience in various sectors including Oil & Gas, FMCG, Banking and large-scale manufacturing. She has an LLB from Kings College London and an LLM from the University of London. She is an Advocate of the Sindh High Court.Ms. Ahmad is the Lead Counsel of the Legal and Governance Advisory, a firm which specialises in corporate governance and compliance. She is Director of Meezan Bank Ltd, International Steel Ltd, Jubilee General Insurance Company Ltd., Engro PowerGen Qadirpur Ltd and Descon Engineering Ltd.
She has also served as a Director of the Pakistan Stock Exchange and was the full time Company Secretary and Head of Legal of HBL and ICI Pakistan Ltd. Ms. Ahmad has been teaching the Directors Certification course approved by SECP at IBA for a number of years and is visiting faculty with KSBL. She also runs training on diversity and inclusion, contract management and conflict resolution and mediation. She is an accredited mediator from CEDR, UK and in addition to training extensively in Pakistan with the Sindh Judicial Academy and the Pakistan Mediators Association, she is a member of the International faculty of CEDR UK.Ms. Ahmad is a founder member of IBA Dispute Resolution Forum which promotes civil and commercial mediation. She is accredited as a mediator with the Sindh High Court. Recently in May 2022, Ms. Ahmad successfully completed the 3 month Negotiation and Dispute Resolution course run by the Harvard Law School
Mr. Rizvi has extensive experience in corporate and financial strategy, taxation, corporate governance, restructuring and mergers & acquisitions. He has been a board member of ICI Pakistan ltd, Pakistan PTA Ltd, Faysal Asset Management Ltd, Atlas Insurance Ltd, Engro Chemicals and Polymers Ltd, Honda Atlas Car company Ltd and Pakistan Oxygen ltd. Beside 1Link, he is on the Board of Al-Meezan Investment management Ltd.Mr Rizvi is a Chartered Accountant, having qualified from England & Wales. He has over 42 years of local and international experience in some of the largest companies in the world, having worked in Pakistan.UK and Saudi Arabia He started his career with ICI Pakistan Ltd, a the then subsidiary of ICI Plc one of the largest chemical companies in the world.
In 1996 he was seconded to ICI PLC’s headquarters in London. During his secondment, he spearheaded ICI PLC’s strategic shift from industrial to consumer and specialized chemicals, leading to a major acquisition of four companies from Unilever PLC for USD 8 bln, as part of the group’s major strategic priority. Subsequently he led the integration of the new companies in the ICI PLC’s European structure. Beside this acquisition, he was also responsible for several divestments of ICI PLC’s major industrial chemical businesses in accord with the group’s strategic move.Back in Pakistan after secondment, he completed the demerger of ICI Pakistan’s Paints and PTA businesses into separate listed companies, facilitating the sale/transfer of these businesses. He retired from ICI Pakistan Ltd as CFO and Finance Director. He has also been President and Chief Executive of Pakistan Institute of Corporate Governancee.He is an alumnus of INSEAD France and Wharton Business School USA and lectures on corporate governance, business strategy and related areas to Board members and other senior executives.
Mr. Agrawalla is the Chief Executive Officer for 1LINK (Pvt.) Ltd. He is a seasoned banker having spent three decades plus in the sector. He has held several management positions in major financial centers in disciplines of sales, marketing, product and retail. He has been associated with major financial institutes – Bank AL Habib, UBL & American Express. In the past, he has also been associated with leading manufacturing companies – Philips Pakistan and Lever Brothers.Prior to his current position, he also served as a board member from Bank AL Habib for 1LINK (Pvt.) Ltd. Mr. Najeeb has been recently appointed as Chairman of Board at First Women Bank Ltd. In addition, he is part of the Institute of Business Administrations (IBA) Karachi’s visiting faculty of Marketing Department since 1996.