Interview with Adil Salahuddin, CEO and Head of Coverage – Standard Chartered Pakistan

Adil Salahuddin is Chief Executive Officer and Head of Coverage at Standard Chartered Pakistan. A seasoned banker with more than three decades of experience, including over 25 years with Standard Chartered, he has worked across corporate and institutional banking, financial markets, and client coverage.

He has held senior leadership roles in Pakistan, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia. Before becoming CEO, he served as Head of Coverage, Pakistan, and earlier led the bank’s Markets business in Pakistan before moving to Dubai in 2021 to oversee Corporate Sales across the Middle East, Pakistan, and Africa region. He holds an MBA from the Institute of Business Administration.

Following are the edited excerpts of a recent conversation BR Research had with him:

BR Research: Standard Chartered has been in Pakistan for more than 160 years, while several other international banks have either exited or significantly reduced their presence. What has kept Standard Chartered committed to the market through repeated economic cycles?

Adil Salahuddin: Standard Chartered has an exceptionally long institutional history in Pakistan and has been in the region for 163 years. Standard Chartered has been a part of Pakistan’s economic journey, navigating numerous economic and political cycles along the way. That gives us a deep understanding of the market.

Our presence in Pakistan has continually evolved alongside the market. We have invested in digital capabilities, strengthened our client proposition and remained focused on the areas where we can create the greatest value for our clients and the broader economy. Today, we continue to offer a broad suite of products and services, from credit cards and mortgages to corporate lending, while maintaining leading positions in trade finance, foreign exchange, dollar clearing and financial institutions banking. We have also deepened our engagement with the sovereign as Pakistan continues to integrate into regional and global trade and investment flows.

Pakistan has a robust banking sector and remains an important market. It has certainly gone through periods of volatility, but volatility is now a global phenomenon as well. Supply chains, trading relationships and investment corridors are changing, and I believe Pakistan’s relevance in that changing global landscape will become more pronounced.

BRR: Local banks have traditionally generated significant earnings from government securities and sovereign lending. How does Standard Chartered compete when its model is different?

AS: Our model is differentiated from many local banks. While we are not a major player in local currency government lending, we have built our business around international and cross-border banking, supported by a healthy and growing advance-to-deposit ratio, a growing retail mortgage portfolio and a robust corporate lending book.

A key trend shaping our business is the evolution of international trade corridors.Traditionally, the model was largely about the Global North investing in the Global South. That is changing. Economies in the Global South have become large enough for South-South investment and trade corridors to become increasingly important.

We are seeing interest from markets such as Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, and China. At the same time, some large Pakistani corporations have reached a stage where they are looking for opportunities beyond Pakistan.

That plays to our strengths. Standard Chartered operates across 55 markets, including many emerging and frontier economies. We help international investors navigate Pakistan, while also helping Pakistani companies understand and access opportunities in markets overseas.

BRR: What advantage does Standard Chartered’s global network give Pakistani companies looking for capital, trade, and expansion overseas?

AS: Our greatest differentiator is our network and the connector role it enables us to play. Whether it is trade, investment, financing or market access, we help clients connect opportunities across markets.

Historically, international banks helped multinational companies enter Pakistan. That remains important, but increasingly the opportunity is also in the other direction. Large Pakistani corporates are increasingly looking at expanding their footprint outside the country, and the State Bank has also been supportive of that evolution.

When a Pakistani company is looking at another market, we can connect it with the right people, provide an understanding of that market, and help it navigate the regulatory and financial environment.

The experience Pakistani companies have gained operating through different economic cycles here can also be relevant in other emerging and frontier economies.

The same connector role applies at the sovereign level. Pakistan wanted access to renminbi financing and the Chinese capital market, and Standard Chartered supported the government in its inaugural Panda Bond transaction. We were involved in helping open that new financing avenue.

For us, whether it is a global client entering Pakistan, a Pakistani corporate expanding overseas or the sovereign looking for new sources of capital, connecting markets is a very important part of our proposition.

BRR: What is Standard Chartered’s main value proposition for large Pakistani companies and multinational clients compared with local banks?

AS: Our international network and connector role are important differentiators; they translate into very tangible benefits for clients. One very important area is foreign-currency liquidity.

Let me give you an example. Following the foreign-exchange liquidity constraints post covid, access to dollars became critical for many companies. Our network enabled us to support clients through that period by accessing offshore liquidity and by increasing our engagement with exporters and remittance flows.

For blue-chip corporate clients, we provide both local-currency funding and access to dollar liquidity while also supporting their trade, treasury and cross-border banking needs.

Trade finance is another important area. For example, a large international buyer may want to work with Pakistani exporters, while those exporters may not always have direct access to the required financing lines. We can act as the intermediary and provide supply-chain and trade-finance solutions.

This is also becoming relevant beyond Pakistan’s traditional export sectors as areas such as IT and services become more important.

BRR: Standard Chartered has a relatively small physical branch network compared with the large local banks. How do you compete effectively without a large brick-and-mortar footprint?

AS: The reduced emphasis on physical branches is intentional and is consistent with our global strategy. As client expectations evolve, we continuously adapt our products, services and channels to meet their needs. Our focus is increasingly on providing differentiated wealth, lending and banking solutions for affluent clients through a digitally enabled experience, particularly in retail banking.

At the same time, having a retail franchise remains important and also it complements our corporate relationships.

Employee banking is a good example. When multinational companies enter Pakistan, they also need banking services for their employees. We can provide those employees with retail banking, internationally accepted credit cards, mortgages, and other services.

The same model works in reverse. Pakistani companies operating or expanding overseas can access our international network.

So, it is a two-way proposition: we connect global companies and their employees with Pakistan, and we connect Pakistani clients with markets outside the country.

BRR: Foreign-exchange management has become tighter in Pakistan, with banks required to better match their inflows and outflows. How has Standard Chartered adapted to those constraints?

AS: We evolved our model in response to the changing operating environment.

One part was accessing our own liquidity outside Pakistan. The second was becoming much more active with exporters. We also became part of the Pakistan Remittance Initiative, which increased our access to foreign-currency inflows.

We realised that the business could not remain unidirectional. We serve multinational clients, but we also have large local corporate clients,exporters and remittance customers.

As a result, we have built a more diversified and balanced foreign-currency franchise, with stronger sources of dollar liquidity and greater resilience across market cycles.

BRR: Pakistan’s banking system is gradually moving towards a greater Islamic banking focus. How are you positioning Standard Chartered Saadiq for that shift?

AS: Saadiq is one of Standard Chartered’s core global propositions. In Pakistan, we are not a niche Islamic banking player. We offer a comprehensive suite of Islamic banking solutions across retail, corporate banks and sovereigns.

One of our key differentiators is our ability to bring expertise, products and market experience from leading Islamic finance centres into Pakistan. We have a global Shariah board and experience in markets such as Malaysia and Saudi Arabia.

For example, we have worked with the SBP as conventional sovereign financing has increasingly shifted towards Sukuk structures.We also see significant potential in areas such as Shariah-compliant hedging solutions, where we can draw on international experience and help support the market’s continued evolution.

That ability to take products and expertise developed elsewhere and adapt them for Pakistan is an important part of how we see Saadiq growing.

BRR: Macroeconomic conditions have improved, but foreign investment remains weak. Are international investors actually becoming more interested in Pakistan, or are they still waiting for deeper reforms?

AS: There are two different types of investors: portfolio investors and long-term strategic investors.

Portfolio investors tend to be yield-seeking We have started to see interest returning after a period of subdued activity and are currently engaging with a number of international investors, hosting global investor delegations visiting Pakistan and meeting relevant stakeholders in Karachi and Islamabad.

But portfolio flows can move in and out relatively quickly.

For longer-term corporate investors, the key requirements are stability and continuity of policies. They want confidence that policies will remain consistent, that the regulatory environment will be predictable, and that the framework for doing business will remain stable over the long term.

Pakistan has achieved meaningful macroeconomic stability despite significant global and regional volatility. That should not be underestimated.

The next step is translating that stability into sustained investment through policy continuity, predictability and continued reform.

BRR: So, would you say policy predictability is now more important than simply offering incentives to foreign investors?

AS: Stability and continuity are fundamental.

Individual incentives can help, but investors ultimately make long-term decisions based on whether they can reasonably predict the operating environment.

Pakistan’s macroeconomic improvement has created a significant opportunity. The focus now should be on building on that momentum through policy continuity and consistency, which can help translate stability into sustained investment and growth.

BRR: As CEO, what will be your top priorities for Standard Chartered Pakistan over the next three to five years?

AS: The first is to strengthen our role as a connector bank.

Global trade and investment corridors are changing. Traditional corridors will remain relevant, but new ones are emerging. Because Standard Chartered has deep connections across its international network, we want to make sure that wherever those new corridors develop, we remain relevant to our clients.

The connector role also applies to products. Historically, when new products such as derivatives were introduced into Pakistan, Standard Chartered was at the forefront. The same happened as renminbi-based products became more important. As new financial products and solutions develop internationally, we want to bring relevant ones into Pakistan.

The second priority is to continue strengthening our WRB affluent and wealth proposition. We cannot be everything to everyone. Instead, we want to be everything to a selected group of clients. That includes affluent clients, multinational companies, financial institutions, employee banking relationships, and wealth-management clients. There are significant synergies across those businesses.

The third priority is people.

Pakistan has a very large young population. When I started banking more than three decades ago, international banks played a significant role in developing banking talent in Pakistan. Many of those institutions are no longer here.

Standard Chartered still has that role. I want us to continue developing Pakistani talent into global bankers who can work to the same standards, policies, and disciplines as bankers in London, New York, Singapore, Hong Kong, or Dubai.

BRR: Retaining skilled people has become difficult, particularly with professionals increasingly looking overseas. Are young people still interested in banking careers?

AS: They are, and we continue to attract and develop some of the best talent available in Pakistan.

One reason is that we provide an international career path. We regularly send Pakistani talent into our global network. It is not a one-way street either; people who gain experience abroad can return to Pakistan into larger roles and take on different challenges.

I have personally returned to Pakistan several times during my career because the opportunities were compelling. Several of our senior employees have followed similar paths.

Compensation matters, of course, but people also want a clear career path, opportunities for development, and international exposure. We can offer both professional growth in Pakistan and international opportunities.

An inclusive culture is another important part of that proposition. Nearly 30 percent of our senior management representation is female. We want employees to view Standard Chartered not simply as a Pakistan-based employer, but as a global institution that offers broad-based exposure and mobility.

BRR: You have returned to Pakistan after holding senior roles overseas. How does that international experience shape what you want Standard Chartered Pakistan to become?

AS: One of the biggest advantages of being part of an international bank is the ability to take experience from one market and apply it in another.

That applies to products, to Islamic banking, to capital markets and to talent development. We have expertise in markets such as Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Dubai, Singapore, London and Hong Kong, and there is considerable value in bringing relevant ideas, capabilities and international standards into Pakistan.

At the same time, Pakistan itself develops bankers who understand complexity and volatility very well. Those skills are highly valuable.

So, the opportunity works both ways: bring global experience into Pakistan and give Pakistani talent and companies greater access to international markets.That is very much aligned with our role as a connector bank.

BRR: Finally, how do you see Pakistan’s economic outlook over the medium term? Can the country preserve stability without suppressing growth for too long?

AS: I am a glass-half-full person.

In the short term, some degree of austerity is necessary, particularly given volatility in global energy prices. Pakistan needs to ensure that it preserves its foreign-exchange reserves because of external shocks.

From a broader perspective, Pakistan’s macroeconomic indicators and reserve position have improved. That has created a much stronger foundation than was the case a few years ago.There is sometimes a debate around the fact that part of those reserves comes from borrowing, but the duration profile of that borrowing is also important. Pakistan’s external debt as a percentage of GDP is not an outlandish number compared with similar economies.

For me, however, Pakistan’s biggest long-term strength is its young population.

Population growth in many large economies is slowing or turning negative. Pakistan has a very different demographic profile. That can be a major competitive advantage, but only if we invest in people and develop the skills required by the future economy.

The challenge is not choosing between stability and growth. It is using stability as a platform for sustainable growth.

The real question is how we harness that young population and turn it into a driver of sustainable growth. That is where the focus needs to be, and Standard Chartered wants to play its role in that process.