Dr. Michael Maier has been named Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Habib Bank Limited (HBL) with effect from February 1, 2022.
Dr. Maier has considerable experience in establishing and running Digital Banking, Payments, tec-Stacks, and IT systems in the financial services sector, according to an official statement, with excellent cross sectoral and client-centric thinking paired with analytical and strategic skills. He also has great leadership skills in shifting market contexts, working with agile teams, and transforming IT.
Dr. Maier’s new role as CTO at HBL will see him striving to improve the bank’s technology strategy and continue to establish a strong technological infrastructure.
He’ll also look at how the bank can continue to integrate new technology to achieve the necessary economies of scale and support HBL’s Digital Agenda.
Dr. Maier will report to HBL’s Chief Operating Officer, Sagheer Mufti. Dr. Maier has a Ph.D. in marketing from LMU Munich’s Institute of Marketing. He has over 25 years of experience working for a variety of European banks, including a leading digital bank.
Throughout his career, he has also given advice services and served on the boards of directors of many organisations. From April 2019 to present, he was CEO of Fidor Solutions AG (which has been integrated into Sopra Banking Software since the end of 2021 after a successful acquisition and integration).
Dr. Aamir Matin has been released of his previous position at HBL and has been offered the position of Senior Advisor for the Core Banking Change Initiative and to assist in the establishment of a Center of Expertise in Islamabad to find and deploy tech-savvy people for the bank.
Dr. Maier’s appointment comes after nearly a year of misery during which HBL’s services were constantly unsatisfactory (in fact, they still are). To recall, HBL’s internet services were down twice in October 2021, creating considerable inconvenience to its customers in the first week of the month, which lingered in the second week despite the bank’s urgent steps.
Customers of the bank experienced an unexpected withdrawal of funds from their accounts in November 2021, with no prior notice from the bank.
To read our blog on “HBL launches industry’s first fully ERP-Integrated QR payment solution,” click here.