The new NBP President and CEO, Imran Sarwar, was appointed by the federal government on September 3, 2026, ending weeks of speculation about who would lead Pakistan’s largest state-owned bank. The government appointed Imran Sarwar as President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) for a three-year term with immediate effect. The move matters not just to the banking sector but to every Pakistani who uses digital payments, government services, or public-sector finance.
How the NBP President and CEO Appointment Happened
A notification issued by the Finance Division’s Internal Finance Wing, dated September 3, confirmed the appointment. It was made under Section 11(3)(a) of the Banks (Nationalization) Act, 1974, and signed by Deputy Secretary Amna Shabbir.
NBP disclosed the development in a filing to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX). The notice also made clear that Sarwar’s role is subject to a Fit and Proper Test clearance by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). This is a standard check that SBP runs on senior bank executives to confirm their financial soundness, professional record, and integrity before they formally take charge.
The appointment closes out a selection process that began in June, when the Finance Division invited applications for the top post after former President Rehmat Ali Hasnie left following the expiry of his final extension on August 21. During the transition, NBP’s Chief Financial Officer Abdul Wahid Sethi handled affairs in an acting capacity, and nine candidates were interviewed in mid-August by a panel led by the Finance Minister.
Who Is Imran Sarwar?
Sarwar joins NBP from United Bank Limited (UBL), where he served as Group Executive for Risk and Credit Policy and Chief Risk Officer, overseeing the bank’s risk architecture and credit policy framework. He brings more than 27 years of leadership, strategy, and risk experience across banking markets in Pakistan, the UAE, the UK, and Australia. Before UBL, he held senior roles at Standard Chartered Bank, most recently as Managing Director and Head of Corporate Banking for the UAE.
His experience also includes board-level positions at Khushhali Microfinance Bank and the Pakistan Mortgage Refinance Company (PMRC), where he contributed to risk policy and governance frameworks. Sarwar holds a business and accounting degree from Ohio Wesleyan University in the United States and an LLB from the University of Punjab, a risk-and-law combination that colleagues at PMRC and Khushhali have pointed to as central to his credit-governance approach.
That mix of international corporate banking and local microfinance board experience is unusual. It suggests he understands both large institutional clients and the smaller, underserved segments that Pakistan’s financial inclusion agenda targets.
Why This Matters for Digital Banking and Raast
NBP is not just a big commercial bank. The State Bank of Pakistan owns 75.20% of NBP. The bank has over 1,500 branches across Pakistan and provides commercial and public-sector banking services including retail banking, agricultural financing, and treasury services. That scale makes every strategic choice at NBP a policy decision, not just a business one.
The bank has been quietly building its digital stack. NBP received approval for the commercial launch of Raast Person-to-Merchant (P2M) Acquiring, a major milestone in the bank’s digital payments journey and Pakistan’s broader transition towards a cashless economy. The approval allows NBP to actively promote Raast P2M acquiring among merchants, customers, institutions, and government entities through structured awareness and media campaigns.
NBP also moved to digitize public services. Under one recent partnership, NBP facilitated Raast P2M QR-based digital fee collections for the Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment (BEOE), enabling instant, secure payments and boosting efficiency and transparency.
Raast itself has grown fast. By the first quarter of FY 2025, Raast was settling transactions worth Rs4.79 trillion, with Rs4.69 trillion of that being peer-to-peer transfers, up from just Rs100 billion at the end of FY 2022. NBP, as the country’s largest state-owned bank, is a key node in this network. For small merchants and everyday users, broader NBP adoption of Raast P2M means faster payments and less dependence on cash when dealing with government counters or public institutions. You can read more about Pakistan’s broader push toward cashless transactions in our earlier look at the merchant database plan to power the cashless economy.
Industry experts say wider Raast adoption could improve transaction efficiency, reduce operational costs for businesses, and support financial inclusion by enabling easier access to formal payment systems. With a new chief in place, NBP’s pace on these goals may now accelerate or be reshaped, depending on where Sarwar sets his priorities in the first few months.
The Financial Picture Sarwar Inherits
NBP posted a profit before tax of Rs67.3 billion and a profit after tax of Rs32.4 billion in the first half of calendar year 2026, translating into earnings per share of Rs15.23 for the half year ended June 30, 2026. That is a solid base to build from, but NBP also carries the weight of being the government’s main banking agent, managing pension payments, salary disbursements, and public-sector accounts across the country. A deeper look at how Pakistani fintechs and regulators are thinking about these challenges is available in our coverage of the Pakistan Fintech Forum where four regulators shared one stage.
Sarwar’s risk-heavy background at UBL and Standard Chartered may mean early focus on cleaning up credit governance and tightening risk frameworks, which could in turn build the credibility NBP needs to push more aggressive digital product launches in the public sector.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the new NBP President and CEO?
Imran Sarwar is the new NBP President and CEO, appointed by the federal government on September 3, 2026 for a three-year term. He previously served as Chief Risk Officer and Group Executive at United Bank Limited (UBL).
When does Imran Sarwar officially take charge at NBP?
His appointment is effective immediately, but it is subject to a Fit and Proper Test clearance by the State Bank of Pakistan. Once SBP grants that clearance, he formally assumes full authority as the bank’s chief executive.
What is Raast and why does it matter for NBP?
Raast is Pakistan’s first instant payment system, an Urdu word meaning a straight, direct, or correct path, symbolising a clean, fast, and reliable route for money to move. NBP has already received approval to commercially launch Raast P2M acquiring, meaning the new CEO will oversee its rollout to merchants and government entities across the country.
Who was the NBP President before Imran Sarwar?
The position became vacant after former NBP President and CEO Rehmat Ali Hasnie left following the expiry of his final extension on August 21. CFO Abdul Wahid Sethi ran the bank on an acting basis until the new appointment was confirmed.
