National Institute of Banking and Finance (NIBAF) was incorporated as a private company limited by guarantee in March 1993 under the umbrella of then Pakistan Banking Council (PBC). However, following the dissolution of PBC in 1997, this institute was taken over by State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) as its fully owned subsidiary.
NIBAF is a premier institute on capacity development for central and commercial bankers, micro and rural finance providers and management professionals. It has vast expertise to develop, deliver and manage both local and international training programs, workshops and seminars for its stakeholders.
The head office, located in Islamabad, operates in a purpose-built campus comprising of academic and residential facilities. The Academic block has spacious training halls, syndicate rooms, computer labs and auditorium, well supported by modern learning equipment. The Institute’s library with a rich collection of books, journals, periodicals and on-line resources provide a calm and congenial learning ambience.
The residential facility consists of 120 single occupancy rooms and 4 fully furnished executive suites. These rooms have provision for climate control system, TV, refrigerators and internet access. The recreational lounge in the hostel offers indoor games and well-equipped gym. The cafeteria provides catering services while ensuring food safety and hygienic conditions.
The institute also has established campuses in the provincial metropolis of Pakistan including Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, and Quetta. This has allowed NIBAF to further extend its outreach to earlier untapped areas of the country.
NIBAF Activities
NIBAF offers a wide range of programs for commercial banks. These programs are unique, as they not only include the perspective of policy makers, but also provide a platform for sharing ideas among participants from different financial institutions.
NIBAF has been conducting several capacity building programs in the area of development finance. (e.g., agriculture, SME, housing, microfinance, and Islamic banking). These programs equip participants with necessary skill and techniques for serving the underbanked segment of the economy. Such trainings are conducted even in remote areas of the country, thus supporting SBP’s strategic objective of financial inclusion.
Capacity building of Islamic banking industry has always been a priority area. NIBAF is among the pioneer institutes in Pakistan offering ‘Islamic Banking Certificate Course’ for over a decade. This flagship program covers wide-ranging concepts in Islamic banking and finance.
NIBAF has played a pivotal role in promoting and sharing new ideas and best practices with central banks and other financial institutions in developing countries. In this regard, ‘International Central Banking Course’, ‘International Commercial Banking Course’, and ‘English Language Course’ are regular programs for the international audience. These training programs, held as part of Pakistan Technical Assistance Program (PTAP), are aimed at mid to-senior level central banker, commercial bankers and regulatory personnel of developing countries.
NIBAF has also introduced e-learning modules to familiarize SBP/BSC employees with latest available learning approaches. As a first milestone in this regards, NIBAF offered a cloud-based e-learning platform containing 300 courses on diversified topics comprising of soft skill and IT-related programs. NIBAF is now aiming to introduce customized e-learning programs for the wider financial industry.
NIBAF regularly arranges seminars under the umbrella of SAARCFINANCE. This seminar draws a large number of delegates from SAARC countries (including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Pakistan) and domestic professionals.
NIBAF is steering National Financial Literacy Program for Youth that aims to directly reach 1.6 million target audience in the three age group (from ages 9-12; 13-17 and 18-29 years) across the country and teach them basic financial concepts and skills (such as how to budget, save, invest and use financial products and services).