NetSol Technologies Inc. ("NetSol") (NasdaqCM:NTWK), a multinational provider of IT services and enterprise software to the financial services industry, has signed a contract with a leading bank in Pakistan to assess its readiness and to help it conform to the framework of the Basel II capital accord.
Under terms of the contract, NetSol will help assess the readiness of the bank in adopting the Internal Ratings Based (IRB) approach of the Basel accord for credit risk. It may be noted that State Bank of Pakistan has been very proactive in encouraging the banking industry of Pakistan to fully adopt the Basel II accord.
Mr. Najeeb Ghauri, chairman and CEO NetSol Technologies, commented, "We are very pleased to announce this new contract win in a growing vertical market for us. The Basel II accord is an important framework for international banks to adopt in an ever increasing global market place. NetSol is currently prepared to advance its consultancy services in the South East Asia and UAE markets after having been recognized for our advisory efforts with the Basel II accord in Asia Pacific and EMEA." Mr. Ghauri concluded, "We already have a very strong base of blue chip banking clients in North America and we are working tirelessly to duplicate our efforts in other regions. Pakistan is a growing niche market for Basel II advisory services and we foresee great opportunities there."
The Basel II capital accord is a regulatory framework developed by Bank for International Settlements (BIS) to regulate banks in controlling and managing the processes relating to credit, market and operational risks. The Basel II Framework describes a more comprehensive measure and minimum standard for capital adequacy that national supervisory authorities are now working to implement through domestic rule-making and adoption procedures. It seeks to improve on the existing rules by aligning regulatory capital requirements more closely to the underlying risks that banks face. In addition, the Basel II Framework is intended to promote a more forward-looking approach to capital supervision, one that encourages banks to identify the risks they may face, today and in the future, and to develop or improve their ability to manage those risks. As a result, it is intended to be more flexible and better able to evolve with advances in markets and risk management practices.
Basil II compliance is a multi-billion-dollar market and as such, NetSol is providing Basel II advisory services to other banks in the regions of Asia Pacific (APAC), Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) in addition to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).