Client Name

Meezan Bank

Faculty Advisor

Dr. Ubedullah Khoso

SBS Thought Leadership Areas

Islamic Business and Finance

SBS Thought Leadership Area Justification

Our ELP falls within the Islamic Business and Finance thought leadership area at IBA-SBS. From the outset, our main aim was to explore the financial behavior and banking needs of university students in Pakistan and design a Shariah-compliant student banking solution in collaboration with Meezan Bank.

While many students seemed interested in Islamic banking, we realized there was a strong lack of knowledge and information about the Shariah principles. Therefore, we intend to integrate financial knowledge, quizzes about Islamic banking, and even an AR session into the mobile app. The reason for including these features is to both capture students’ interest and help them learn key Islamic finance concepts such as Riba, Murabaha, and Takaful. Thus, our project complements CEIF’s mission by spreading Islamic finance knowledge in a way that appeals to young people and uses technology.

In addition, we think our product affects others in the industry in important ways. It introduces a type of Shariah-compliant banking designed for youth, which is not yet available to people in the market. The idea to include AR, gamification, and student discounts in Islamic banking could make Gen Z consumers view Islamic financial services in a more up-to-date way. This will make Meezan Bank the first to introduce a full student product.

Aligned SDGs

GOAL 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

Aligned SDGs Justification

SDG 9 – Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

The project promotes the use of futuristic tools like AR debit cards and engagement games, which are especially valuable for a market that has until now been neglected. This pushes forward the target in SDG 9 to enhance innovations and create strong infrastructure.

There are also other SDGs which our project aligned so we have also discussed them further in detail.

SDG 4 – Quality education

The incorporation of financial literacy and shariah teaching in our product as well as how our solution proposes a gamified learning system and educational content to help students understand Islamic finance, financial decision making and savings habits contributes to quality education.

SDG 8 – Decent Work and Economic Growth

The project aims to support economic involvement of youth by including referrals for internships, resources for building careers, and tools to increase understanding of money and finances. Through such initiatives, students improve their abilities and options in getting jobs, contributing to the SDG 8 goals of productive employment and growth in the economy.

SDG 10 – Reduced Inequalities

Our final product recommendation suggests features like low maintenance fees and daily use discounts and benefits that support students who lack financial literacy and documentation. By promoting inclusive banking solutions that cater to students across various socioeconomic backgrounds and removal of barrier for low-income students this ELP aligns with SDG 10.

NDA

No

Abstract

This report presents the findings of an Experiential Learning Project (ELP) conducted by the students of IBA Karachi in partnership with Meezan Bank. The primary objective of this project was to understand the financial needs, behaviors, and challenges faced by the university students in Pakistan, and design a Shariah Compliant Banking Product that not only better suits their lifestyle but also helps mitigate these challenges to foster a student centric economical banking environment. The team conducted surveys and focus groups with students from leading universities of Pakistan to get insights on their spending habits, banking preferences and issues with existing banking services.

The results revealed that students appreciate convenience, digital services, discounts and Islamic finance; however, many of them do not have appropriate knowledge about Shariah Compliant Banking. The proposed product is a student account that can provide monetary and non-monetary benefits and rewards, including discounts on canteens and ride hailing services, career support initiatives and augmented reality features- while aligning with Islamic finance principles. The report also includes competitor analysis and international case studies to support the product design. This project aims to help Meezan bank lead the student banking market by introducing an innovative, ethical, and student-centered banking solution.

Document Type

Restricted Access

Document Name for Citation

Experiential Learning Project

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