Mr. Amar Zafar Khan
Mr. Amar Zafar Khan is a Chartered Accountant, with over 30 years multi-functional experience at premium international financial institutions, covering general management, directing turnarounds and developing new ventures/ businesses in commercial banking, investment banking, domestic and cross-border corporate finance and securities trading. He has exposure to markets in Europe, the Middle East and Africa and has knowledge and experience of a wide spectrum of financing solutions.
Mr. Amar did his M.B.A. (Major in Marketing) from Cranfield School of Management, Bedford, UK. He is Fellow, Institute of Chartered Accountants, England & Wales, UK.
Mr. Zafar was Chairman and CEO of United Bank Limited (UBL) from the year 2000 to 2004. At the government’s invitation, he took the helm of this nationalized institution, in order to accelerate the pace of commercialization and achieve privatization. The entire Bank was overhauled along contemporary banking lines. Operations were completely revamped; critical monitoring functions, risk management, IT and communications, were upgraded; investment banking was introduced and the business development culture was reinvigorated. A sense of commercial urgency was encouraged at all levels. This period covered major staff reduction, significant branch rationalisation, resolution of decades-old government-related issues, both credit and fiscal, and successful solicitation of government assistance for non-performing assets. 1450 branches and 16,000 staff trimmed to 1100 branches and 10,000 staff while tripling balance sheet footings. Within the first year, the organisation had turned the corner in terms of profitability. Mid way the Bank was successfully privatised to multinational owners, for a price which substantially recouped equity injections by the government. Mr. Zafar was invited by the new owners to continue as CEO in order to build on the momentum achieved and assist the new Board to settle in. Further upgrading of management, staff and network occurred and the Bank built capacity for the launch of its consumer assets activity, and reported record profits for the first full year after privatization.
Mr. Amar was also appointed as Advisor and Director of UBL in 1996 by State Bank of Pakistan where he played a pivotal role in the multi-dimensional restructuring of the bank.
In 2009, Mr. Amar relocated to Malaysia on a sabbatical. Managed a private portfolio of Financial investments, Eurobonds and equities. Studied Psychology and practiced Life Coaching. He came back to Pakistan in 2012.
Since 2012, Mr. Amar is on the Boards of Directors of 3 NGOs in Pakistan, operating in health care, and education. During this period, he served for 18 months as an Interim CEO, Greenstar Social Marketing, Pakistan’s largest NGO with focus on family planning, to spearhead its restructuring in order to position it for greater momentum. He has since stepped down from Greenstar.