Bank of Punjab, NCMCL join hands for EWR project to support farmers against storage of agri commodities

KARACHI: The Bank of Punjab (BoP) and Naymat Collateral Management Limited (NCMCL) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the development of Electronic Warehouse Receipt (EWR) Ecosystem in Pakistan.

EWR, the first of its kind in Pakistan, will be a digital instrument which will give financial institutions real time information and access to farmers who have placed their produce in an accredited warehouse, significantly reducing transaction costs and operational risks for the banks.

Speaking on the occasion, Asif Riaz – Group Head Retail & Priority Sectors Lending Bank of Punjab, cited that the bank has always been on the forefront to meet financial needs of the farmers. 

The EWR regime will be an innovative addition to the lending product menu of BoP. 

Malik said that the regime will be launched shortly primarily for paddy, rice and maize. 

The scope of EWR regime will be broadened and it will be scaled up by including other commodities in future.

Meanwhile, commenting on the development, Zafar Masud, President and CEO of BoP, said that he is most excited about this collaboration. 

“This is the 1st step to eliminate middlemen from farm financing. BOP will remain committed to its course of creating “markets/paths” for “out of the box” businesses & ideas,” he stated.