SBP Approves the First Ever White Label ATM Operator in Pakistan

Webdnaworks (Pvt) Ltd (WPL) is the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) licensed and regulated Payment System Operator (PSO) and Payment Service Provider (PSP).

WPL has been granted this full commercial license for the installation of White Label ATMs across Pakistan. WPL plans to roll out 600 ATMs over the next two years, and are willing to drive ATM penetration and accessibility for masses across urban, semi-urban, and rural markets to play its role in supporting the SBP’s financial inclusion objectives. It is the only non-bank entity in Pakistan to own and operate an ATM Network with the brand name ‘CASH1’. 

White Label ATMs (WLAs) business model enables non-bank entities to act as a digital bank through the installation of ATMs and Cash Deposit machines not only to facilitate the general public but also to the banks as these WLAs serves as additional payout points for their customers.

Achieving this narrative was never possible without the acquiescence and guidance of the regulator (State Bank of Pakistan) therefore, in line with the vision of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to increase the acquiring network in Pakistan comparable to the other countries globally WPL applied for the PSOs/ PSPs license under the SBP’s Rules for PSOs and PSPs. 

WPL on fulfilling the regulator’s procedural, financial, and compliance requirements got in-principal approval followed by a detailed audit carried out by the SBP. After a satisfactory audit report, SBP allowed WPL to launch its pilot operations. 

The pilot operation was the last procedural requirement by the regulator to check the WPLs compliance in a live environment before the authorization of commercial go ahead. In this phase, WPL installed CASH1 WLAs in several commercial and public places of Islamabad, Rawalpindi, and Lahore.

And on satisfactory completion of the pilot phase, WPL has been granted final approval for the commercial launch as the only company which solely embark on this White Label ATM Operator (WLAO) journey.

WPL is the first non-banking member of 1LINK Pakistan (the national switch), we provide Bank in a Box solution for all the local banks’ customers in form of additional payout points in the places where they require it the most (Utility bill payments, Inter Bank Fund Transfer (IBFT), and Cash Deposit will also be available in the second phase).

This license has also enabled us to collaborate with SBP member Banks /Financial Institutions /Micro Finance Banks for the installation of offsite ATMs, each ATM installed in this scheme shall be facilitating bank by provisioning off the counter facility to their customers resulting in growth in their network reach and account holders numbers without capitalizing on their physical access.