Meezan Bank, Pakistan’s Premier Islamic bank has been presented the certificate of approved ‘Training Organization Outside Practice’ (TOoP) by Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (ICAP); making it the first Islamic bank and one of only three banks in the country to be authorized as a TOoP in association with ICAP Syed Najmul Hussain – Senior National Council Member ICAP /Partner KPMG presented the authorization certificate to Mr. Irfan Siddiqui – President & CEO, Meezan Bank was represented by Mr. Ariful Islam – Deputy CEO, Mr. Shabbir Hamza Khandwala – CFO & Group Head Finance, , Mr. Khalid Zaman Khan – Group Head HR, L&D and ICAP was represented by Mr. Omair Jamal – Senior Director Education and Training, and Mr. Salman Abbasi – Deputy Director Training and Student Affairs along with senior management from both organizations at a ceremony held at Meezan Bank’s Head Office, Karachi.
The TOoP Scheme has been launched by ICAP to enable businesses to build sustainable human capital; and has emerged as an international trend opening opportunities for students as well as existing employees for professional development and career advancement.
As part of Meezan Bank’s ongoing efforts to further develop industry-academia partnership, the Bank recently launched the ‘Meezan Pro League’ which is a talent development program for young and competent individuals who wish to grow in the field of Finance and Accounting.
Having been awarded this status, Meezan Bank is now amongst the few organizations that can provide training to ICAP students who have completed Certificate of Accounting and Finance (CAF) level and are now eligible for 3.5 years of articleship.
Speaking at the occasion Mr. Irfan Siddiqui said, “Meezan Bank and ICAP share a common goal for cultivating talent for Islamic finance as well as creating valuable knowledge resources aimed towards enhancing the business and finance sectors. Through this combined initiative, the two organizations will contribute to the industry’s growth by training the next cadre of leaders. The articleship will create further opportunities for students who are pursuing their career in accounting & finance and Islamic banking in particular and will accelerate the synergy required to produce professionals with high competency standards”.
