United Bank Limited (Urdu ：یونائیٹڈ بینک） is a Pakistani commercial bank headquartered in Karachi. It is a subsidiary of the British multinational conglomerate Bestway Group.

It is listed on the Pakistan Stock Exchange and designated as a Domestic Systemically Important Bank (D-SIB) by the State Bank of Pakistan.

History

UBL Headquarters at Night

UBL Street View

Agha Hasan Abedi founded the bank in November 1958 and became the second largest bank in Pakistan. In 1974, the Pakistani government nationalized the bank.

In 2002, the Pakistani government sold its 51% stake in the bank to a consortium of Abu Dhabi Group and Bestway. In addition, the bank merged its UK operations with those belonging to State Bank of Pakistan to form United National Bank Limited. United Bank owns 55% of the joint venture, with State Bank of Pakistan owning the rest.

In August 2003, UBL launched Pakistan's first derivative currency market product.

In February 2005, UBL became the first bank in South Asia to launch an EMV-enabled credit card. In June 2005, with the launch of the term installment personal loan product "UBL Money", UBL became the only bank in Pakistan to offer a full range of consumer financing products. In August 2005, UBL became the first bank in Pakistan to obtain the status of "Authorized Derivatives Dealer" and the only domestic bank to achieve this status.

In June 2007, UBL's Global Depositary Receipts were listed on the London Stock Exchange. The offering was targeted at institutional investors and raised over $650 million. UBL is the only Pakistani bank and one of only two Pakistani companies to be listed on the London Stock Exchange.

In April 2010, UBL launched UBL Omni, an internally developed project to provide banking facilities to the unbanked population of Pakistan. As of June 2014, UBL Omni had a customer base of over 6.80 million, with over 1.50 million active cards issued and 5 million transactions per month worth over $253 million. Through the success of UBL Omni, 1.55 million previously unbanked individuals opened mobile banking accounts with UBL in Pakistan. Today, the Omni Dukaan network has grown to 42,100 agents in Pakistan.

In January 2011, Bestway Group acquired an additional 20% stake from Abu Dhabi Group, increasing its shareholding ratio in UBL to 51.07%. This is a total investment of $230 million in Pakistan's second largest private commercial bank.

The bank added 200 branches in 2011 and 2012, thereby increasing its domestic network to over 1,300 online branches and 800 ATMs.

In June 2012, UBL led a consortium to acquire a 67.4% stake in Pakistan's largest microfinance institution, Khushhali Bank

In December 2013, Bestway Group acquired an additional 10.3% stake from Abu Dhabi Group, increasing its shareholding ratio in UBL to 61.37%. Through an investment of over $120 million, Bestway Group acquired the entire stake in its former joint venture partner, Abu Dhabi Group.

In June 2014, the Pakistani government sold its remaining 19.8% stake in UBL for $387 million (of which $310m was in foreign exchange). This was Pakistan's first trading on the global stock market in almost eight years.

In 2017, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) initiated criminal proceedings against Khalid Iqbal, head of capital markets at United Bank Limited, and three associates. The case involved two unusual purchases of Gharibwal Cement Limited shares by UBL under the authority of Iqbal. Investigations revealed that Iqbal's associates bought the shares at a lower price and sold them to UBL at a higher price. The court convicted the four men, concluding that they had illegally profited and caused financial losses to UBL.

In November 2018, UBL announced the voluntary closure of its New York City branch as it was commercially inoperable.

UBL announced on June 12, 2021 that it would wind up its wholly-owned Swiss subsidiary, UBL (Switzerland) AG, which it had owned since 1967. The process was completed on June 2, 2023.

UBL announced on September 12, 2023 that its largest shareholder, Bestway Group, has submitted an "indicative offer" to acquire UBL's 55% stake in its UK joint venture with the State Bank of Pakistan, United National Bank Limited (UNBL UK). This was approved by UBL's Board of Directors, but conditionally by the State Bank of Pakistan.

Today, UBL is the largest privately owned bank in Pakistan with over 1,390 branches nationwide, 18 overseas branches, significant presence throughout the Middle East, and representative offices in Beijing and Kazakhstan.

Previous Operations

UBL previously had subsidiaries in the UK and Switzerland and a branch in New York.

Awards and Honours

In May 2016, UBL was named "Best Bank 2016" in the inaugural Pakistan Bank Awards, hosted by the Pakistan Bankers Association. The "Best Bank" category aims to recognise banks that make the most significant contribution to the development of the country and manage their resources, including staff, customers, concessions, communities and finances, most effectively.

Also in 2016, JCR-VIS Credit Ratings Limited (JCR-VIS) upgraded the Entity rating of United Bank Limited (UBL) to "AAA/A-1 +" (Triple A/A-One Plus). The year also saw UBL's Facebook page receive more than 1 million likes, making it the first Pakistani bank to have more than 1 million followers on Facebook. This achievement cemented its reputation as a progressive and innovative bank.

UBL became the only bank to receive the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) "Company of the Year" award for three consecutive years (2016-18). The three-year awards were recently presented at an awards ceremony held in Karachi. The Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mr. Imran Khan, who was the chief guest at the event, presented the awards. Ms. Sima Kamil, former President and CEO of UBL, took over the award from the Prime Minister, Mr. Imran Khan, on behalf of the bank.

In a major development, TaxationPk, a leading online platform for tax-related information and services, announced its decision to no longer accept accounts related to United Bank Limited (UBL). The move, attributed to the widespread boycott of the bank, is expected to have a profound impact on UBL clients, especially those involved in tax-related matters.

FinCEN

Union Bank was named in a FinCEN document published by BuzzFeed News and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). From 2011 to 2012, it flagged eight suspicious transactions totaling $399,620.