ABL presents the Fintech Hackathon 2022 in collaboration with the National Incubation Center

LAHORE – Allied Bank Limited in collaboration with National Incubation Center Fintech Hackathon 2022 Finale was held in Lahore on 17 October 2022.

NIC and ABL aimed to find practical innovative solutions, prototypes and disruptive ideas that can transform Fin-tech not only in Pakistan but worldwide through this hackathon.

The following thematic areas were identified for hacking solutions in the Fin-Tech area of ​​the hackathon:

1. Innovation in Fintech Banking

2. Financial inclusion and literacy

3. SME & Startup Banking

A nationwide call was made, resulting in over 1,100 applications from coders, UI/UX experts and financial problem solvers, covering 53 cities and 26 universities across Pakistan. The final twelve shortlisted teams underwent a three-day training bootcamp consisting of 8 hours of mentorship, 7 hours of training followed by 12 hours of hacking to help the teams become better equipped for their innovation challenge. A total of six teams were selected for the ABLX NIC Fintech Hackathon Finale, based on their final pitches after the bootcamp.

The event started with recitation of the Holy Quran, followed by a welcome letter by Parvez Abbasi, Project Director, NIC. Where he welcomed all participants, guests and judges. The judges include Fatima Mazhar, Advisory Board Member, COLABS-Mujahid Ali, Chief Information Technology Group, Allied Bank Limited and Sohail Aziz, Chief Digital Officer, Allied Bank Limited.

NIC Project Director Parvez Abbasi said, “In 2016, we proposed to the Government of Pakistan a program where youth can be engaged in creating sustainable technology-based solutions, and then create employment opportunities. I am happy to share that this program has not only shown exponential success and growth , but also brought the change and innovation in Pakistan to real-time problems that exist in large organizations in Pakistan.As a result of our commitment to bring innovation, the NIC Health Hackathon revolutionized the detection and prevention of COVID-19 during the pandemic, while our environmental tasks motivated us to to build Pakistan’s first ever plastic road. Considering the potential of the fintech industry, NIC partnered with ABL to enable innovation in this domain as well.”

The NIC team explained the house rules to the contestants and the distinguished judges after which the Pitching competition was officially started.

Faysal Fateh of Team Finantler was the first to pitch with teammates Dr. Seemab Latif and Ahmed Rihan. Finantler, creates hyper-personalization of digital banking products to promote financial inclusion of female, Gen Z and Millennial entrepreneurs.

Agha Mujtaba of Team Codek was in second place, with teammates Muhammad Shahzaib and Muhammad Saad. Codek, is a digital log of recurring monthly expenses in just a few steps.

Syed Asif of Team OxiPay was the third to throw, along with teammate Muhammad Shafqat Khan. OxiPay simplifies payments by using QR codes.

The first three pitches were followed by a panel discussion around “Allied Bank’s digital journey in collaboration with partners and the startup ecosystem”. The panelists included Sohail Aziz, Chief Digital Officer, Allied Bank- Asif Akram, COO Systems Limited- Ahson Saeed, Managing Director, BPC Technologies and Noman Bashir, CEO, OZoned, where the finalists along with the guests and judges discussed the role ABL has played in Fintech- the campaign and awareness in Pakistan.

After an informative panel discussion, Batool Amir and Muhammad Mansoor Amir of Team Oval were the fourth to pitch. Oval, Leveraging Metaverse to Accelerate Financial Inclusion and Literacy.

Syed Araib Muneem and Junaid Arif of OG Pay were the fifth to bowl. OG Pay aims to revolutionize the secure and cost-effective ways to transfer wallet-to-wallet payments in an instant using blockchain technology.

Labiqa Noor, Munib ur Rehman and Syed Zain Ali from Fortify were the last to pitch. Fortify, is a B2B saas-based erp solution for property developers.

The pitching session concluded with a closing note by Mr. Azid Gill, Managing Director, Allied Bank. Followed by token of appreciation by Mr. Mujahid Ali, Chief Information Technology Group Allied Bank.

Allied Bank CEO Azid Gill said, “This event is a true testament to Allied Bank’s commitment to supporting the development of the Fintech and Startup ecosystem in Pakistan. Allied Bank and NIC hosted exemplary teams who presented revolutionary ideas related to the field of digital banking , while addressing the problem statements given to them. The ideas aimed to solve issues like customer experience, financial inclusion and credit access through innovation in banking. Allied Bank has always been a strong advocate of State Bank of Pakistan’s goals and this event works as a good example of how Allied Bank significantly contributes to achieving these.”

Team OVAL was announced as the winner, while FORTIFY was second and FINANTLER was third runner-up. The event ended with a prize distribution followed by a networking lunch.

In Pakistan, the digital economic potential is around $36 billion by 2025, increasing GDP by 7%, creating 4 million new jobs and bringing in $263 billion in new deposits. This will create a need for young innovators to bring in solutions that will revolutionize the space and lead to mass adoption of digital financial services. ABL and NIC believe that hackathons are a great way to mobilize the community to find solutions to existing micro- and macro-economic problems that are prevalent in the country.