INTERNSHIP REPORT

Tanzeela tayyaba

060518
BBA 08

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

First of all thanks to Almighty Allah, who gave me the strength and courage to complete this
task, I am thankful to my parents for their prayers, their financial and moral support.

I am thankful to all my friends for their help and support. And at most I am grateful to the whole
crew of Askari Bank, who has been a source of learning and cooperation for me.

I have tried my level best to make this work thoughtful and precise, but it may have mistakes, I
will be more than pleased to have feedback, and suggestions to help me improve my work for my
future projects.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Executive summary Page 4

Introduction Page 5
1.1. History of Askari Commercial Bank Page 6
Ltd.
1.2. Objectives of ACBL Page 8
1.3. Organizational Structure Page 10
1.4. Products and Services Page 13
2. Learning and experience Page 20
2.1. Rationale for selection Page 20
2.2. SWOT of ACBL Page 32
2.3. Recommendations Page 36
2.4. Conclusion Page 38

References Page 40

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

This is an explanatory report about my internship that I completed at Askari Bank from
8th June, 2009 to 18th July 2009.Askari Bank is one of the rapidly expanding banks of Pakistan
which has stretched over 200 branches all over the Pakistan. Along with my personal account in

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Askari Bank, perhaps its dynamic progress was one of the main reasons of my joining to this
bank for my internship.

This report holds information about different departments of Askari bank. The purpose of this
report is to document the experience and learning which I gained during my internship. Although
I was not considered as a regular employee of the bank to whom bank may award a major
responsibility of banking but even then during my internship I was able to learn practical aspects
of the bank, and got a bird’s eye view of the banking activities in the departments I was assigned
to. I was placed in six departments from where I learned so many things.

During this whole process I gained information about Askari Bank which previously I did not
have any knowledge of i.e. the history of the bank, products and services it offers, the prevailing
departments of the bank and their functions and how the bank’s day to day activities are
conducted.

To conclude I may say that Askari Bank has aggressive growth plans in Pakistan. It has
developed a good reputation for good service and a quality bank. It offers a broad range of
products to target different market segments.

INTRODUCTION

According to Dr. Hart

“Banker or bank is a person or company carrying on business of receiving money and

collecting drafts for the customers subject to the obligation of honoring cheques drawn upon

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them from time to time by customers to the extends of the amounts available on their currents
accounts”.

In the words of G W Gilbert

“A banker is a dealer in capital or more properly a dealer in money. He is an intermediate

party between the borrower and lender. He borrows one party and lends to the another”

According to Banking companies ordinance 1984

“Banking means the accepting, for the purpose of lending, or investment, of deposits of
money from the public, repayable on demand or otherwise, and withdraw able by cheque,
draft, order or otherwise.”

“Banking companies mean companies which transact the business of banking in Pakistan.”

Commercial Bank:

“The commercial bank receives surplus money from the public and lend to others who needs
funds. Bank collects cheque, bills of exchange etc from customers. It transfers money from
one place to another. It provides agency and general utility services. Purpose of commercial
bank is to earn profit.”

1.1. HISTORY OF ASKARI COMMERCIAL BANK

The banking sector has witnessed a dramatic change during the last ten years with the
development of Askari Bank, which is not only redefining priorities and focus of the banks,
but also threatening the domination of traditional players. The story begins with the
incorporation of Askari Commercial Bank limited in Pakistan on October 09, 1991, Askari

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Bank Commenced (begin) to operations in April 1992, as a public limited company. The
bank is listed on the Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad Stock Exchanges and the initial public
offering was over subscribed by 16 times.

While capturing the target market share amongst the view banks, Askari has provided good
value to its shareholders. Its share price has remained approximately 12% higher than the
average share price of quoted banks during the last four years.

Askari Bank has expanded into a nation wide presence of 153 Branches, and an Offshore
Banking Unit in Bahrain. A shared network of over 800 online ATMs covering all major
cities in Pakistan supports the delivery channels for customer service. As on December 31,
2008, the Bank had equity of Rs. 11.016 billion and total assets of Rs. 207.168 billion, with
over 475,000 banking customers, serviced by a total staff of 2,118.

Askari Bank is the only bank with its operational head office in the twin cities of Rawalpindi-
Islamabad, which have relatively limited opportunities as compared to Karachi and Lahore.
This created its own challenges and opportunities, and forced as to evolve an outward-
looking strategy in terms of Askari market emphasis. As a result, Askari developed a
geographically diversified assets base instead of a concentration and heavy reliance on
business in the major commercial centers of Karachi and Lahore, where most other banks
have their operational Head offices.

Historically, Askari’s core marketing focus for its asset base has been the middle and upper
middle business houses (including wholesalers and manufacturers) operating in the large
urban centers of Pakistan, which are primarily oriented towards foreign trade. This segment
constitutes significant revenues to the bank. The liability side remains focused on the middle
and upper middle class retired and serving government and armed forces personal and mid-
size business houses.

Their corporate banking division was established in April 1999 with the primary focus on
servicing large corporate and multi-national companies (MNCs). Benefiting from the bank’s
growing balance sheet size, this division B now gaining momentum and their long-term aim
D to develop it into an independent.

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Strategic business unit (SBU)… This would the bank to acquire, develop and specialized
abilities, and enhance their focus on serving the emerging needs of the corporate clients.

With this branch network of over 100 and further expected increase in future, the ATM’s
facility and internet Banking, Askari Bank’s reach is ever increasing. In recognition of this
reach, they have set up a retail-banking group in July 2000, the mobile ATM’s facility is first
time started by Askari commercial bank in 2005 dedicated to serving the urban consumer
market; Askari is committed to aggressively market this segment. The strategy is to provide
their customers with a basket of innovative products to meet their varying needs.

Askari Commercial Bank is the only Private Sector bank that has been approved by the
World Bank as a Participating Financial Institution for the US$ 200 million Line of Credit
sanctioned (authorized) to the Government of Pakistan for the Financial Sector Deepening
and Intermediation Project.

Askari's emphasis on further broadening its core foreign trade business translated into
handling a higher volume of Export and Import business of Rs. 36 billion registering a
growth of 42% over the pervious year. This enhanced foreign trade business was secured due
to excellent customer services and efficient international settlement arrangements with our
correspondent banks.

Askari Bank is operating throughout Pakistan. Most of the branches are connected through
our State of the Art, On-line Communications Network, which gives the bank a competitive
edge in providing instant services to its clientele. We also offer direct access to the latest
Foreign Exchange Rates through our Online Communications.

Mission:

To be the leading private sector bank in Pakistan, with an international presence,

delivering quality services through innovative technology and effective resource
management, in a modern and progressive organization culture of meritocracy, maintain
high ethical and professional standards, with providing enhance value to all our
stakeholders, and contributing to society.

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 Vision:
To be the leading bank in Pakistan.

Core values:
The intrinsic values, which are corner stones of Askari corporate behavior, are:

• Commitment
• Integrity
• Fairness
• Team-work
• Service

Objectives of ACBL:
As Askari Bank looks ahead to the future by moving through the decade its efforts are
guided by a broad framework of corporate objectives, which are as follows:.

• It will endure to provide its customers with as many creative financial services and
products, as is required. As today customer demands a package of services suited to
this particular business, Askari plans to develop different and new products to cater to
the customer's demand. Askari bank has they strength to be a market leader.
• Bank will keep standing and by and develop, its human capital base. It is planning to
provide all the required training to its staff towards achieving a higher level of
professionalism. Askari will continue striving to build a strong, motivated and
dedicated work force where total commitment will be towards customer's satisfaction
and wealthy growth of organization.
• Askari bank will endure to provide a competitive return to its shareholders and will
strive to maximize its share value. The enhancement in its capital and returns will be
a continuous process. Askari bank is interested in being one of the most financially
viable institutions. So it lays great emphasis on gradual building up to a healthy
deposit mix. In the years ahead, the bank will enhance its focus on growth through
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 operational efficiency, creating strategic alliances developing well-structured
networking system innovating new products, enhancing marketing and sales efforts
improving customer service, achieving greater employee motivation and providing
the best value to its stakeholders - will make it a leader in the corporate world.

How to deliver:

These objectives and guiding mission will be achieved through

BOARD OF
• Focused objective DIRECTORS
• Winning as a team Executive Internal
Committee Audit
• Excellence in delivery
• Relentless quality President and
Chief Executive
• Upward rising sales

Corp.
Operating Retail
Banking & Region Credit
and credit Banking
Fin. Inst. s Cards
group Group
Group
Rawalp Planning
Internation indi/Isl Asset and
Credit
al amaba Products Corporate
d affairs
Investme
Electronic Human
Treasury North nt
Technology Resource
1.3. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE products
Corporate
Systems
and
and Lahore Finance
Merchant
Operations
Banking
Data
East
Reporting

Legal
South I
Affairs

South
9
II

West
• Corporate Information

Lt. Gen. Javed Zia (HIM) Chairman

Lt. Gen (R) Imtiaz Hussain Chairman Executive Committee
Maj Gen (R) Saeed Ahmed Khan Director
Mr. Zafar Alam Khan Sumbal Director
Dr. Bashir Ahmad Khan Director
Mr. Shahid Mahmud Director
Mr. Muhammad Riyazul Haque Director
Mr. Ali Noormahomed Rattansey Director

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 Mr. Tariq lqbal Khan Director (NIT Nominee)
Mr. Muhammad Rafiquddin Mehkari President & Chief Executive

Mr. M. A. Ghazali Marghoob Company Secretary

• Audit Committee

Dr. Bashir Ahmad Khan Chairman

Mr. Ali Noormahomed Rattansey Member
Mr. Tariq Iqbal Khan Member

• Auditors

A.F.Ferguson & Co. Chartered Accountants

• Legal Advisors

Rizvi, Isa, Afridi & Angell

• Registered Office /Head Office

AWT Plaza, The Mall,

P.O.Box 1084, Rawalpindi.
Tel : (051) 9063000

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 Fax: (051) 9272455
Website
www.askaribank.com.pk
:

1.4. Products and Services

The product & services of Askari commercial bank limited are developed keeping in
view the customers needs & wants, & the expectation that the customer attaches with its
financial institutions.

A product ACBL includes all those services which customer normally required for
effectively managing his business.

ACBL offers the following financial services to its customers.

1) Deposits
2) Advances
3) Products

1.4.1. Deposits:
One of the basic functions of commercial banking is to receive deposits. ACBL
accepts deposits in both local & foreign currency.

• Local currency deposits

Current Account

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 PLS Saving Account
Term Deposit
Notice Deposit
Askari Faida Account
Askari Special Deposit Account
Value plus Saving Account
Askari Advantage

• Current Account

A current account is a running & active account, which may be operated upon any
number of transactions during a working day. The banker undertakes to repay
these on demand & therefore theses accounts are called demand deposits.

• Transaction fee

The bank charges no transaction fees if the minimum balance requirement is met.
However, if the average balance falls below the min. balance then the fees is
charged at the rate of Rs. 10 per transaction.

• Saving Accounts

The saving account is usually opened by lower or middle class people so that they
can meet their future contingencies, as the objective of such account is to
promoting the habit of thrift among people, the bank impose certain restrictions
on withdrawals from the saving accounts.

• Transaction fees

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 Transaction fees are charged of Rs. 20 per transaction if the min balance is not
met.

1.4.2. Advances

Advances are major sources of earning of income for commercial banks. Banks attracts
surplus balances from the customers at low interest rates & makes advances at higher
interest rates to the individuals or business firms.

ACBL offer these facilities in two forms:

• Funded facilities
• Non- Funded facilities

• Funded facilities

In funded facilities the bank actually advances money against further repayment.
These facilities are known as cash credits.

• Non- Funded facilities

Non- Funded facilities are those in which bank substitutes its own credit for its
customers.

ACBL offers to its customers are large number of non-funded facilities.

These facilities include:

1. Guarantee
2. Letter of credit

1.4.3. Products

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• Personal finance:

Personal Finance is a parameter driven product for catering to the needs of the
general public belonging to different segments. One can avail unlimited
opportunities through Askari Bank's Personal Finance. With unmatched finance
features in terms of loan amount, payback period and most affordable monthly
installments, Askari Bank's Personal Finance makes sure that one gets the most
out of his/her loan. Once a good credit history is established, the door to
opportunity opens much wider.

• Mortgage finance

Askari "Mortgage Finance" offers the convenience of owning a house of choice,

while living in it at its rental value. The installment plan has carefully designed to
suit both the budget & accommodation requirements. It has been designed for
enhancing financing facility initially for employees of corporate companies for
purchase/ construction/ renovation of house. The maximum financing amount is
Rs. 10 million with a repayment tenure upto 20 years.

• Business finance

In pursuance of the National objectives to review the economy of the country,

ACBL is providing loans to small and medium size business enterprises under
Askari Bank's Business Finance Scheme. Our goal is to offer a loan, which
enables business community to receive the financing required by them based on
their cash flows. Ore valued customers can enjoy the convenience of getting
financing on attractive terms with the minimum processing turnaround time.

• Askcar (Car Finance)

Yet another of our products, Askcar offers the most convenient and affordable
vehicle- financing scheme, which provides our valuable customers an opportunity
to own a brand new vehicle of their choice. With minimum down payment, lowest

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 insurance rates and widest range of available car makes and models, Askcar offers
the best value to our esteemed customers.

• Askcard

ASKCARD means freedom, comfort, convenience and security, so that you can
have retail transactions with complete peace of mind. ASKCARD is your new
shopping companion which enhances your quality of life by letting you do
shopping, dine at restaurants, pay your utility bills, transfer funds, withdraw and
deposit cash through ATM anywhere, anytime.

• Traveller cheques

The range of our products and value added services enhances with introduction of
Rupee Travellers Cheques (RTCs) launched in March 2002. In spite of our
constraint on issuing higher denomination of RTCs against restrictions imposed
by the Central Bank of Pakistan we have been striving to attain our shares with
sizeable portfolio. Total volume handled by the department during the year 2004
is Rs. 798 Million.

• Value Plus

The first liability product launched by this unit is showing a remarkable

acceptability in the market. The growth of this product is witnessed by its share,
which has presently reached at Rs. 1,079 Million even after lowering down the
profit rates due to sufficient liquidity in the market.

Askari master card

No joining fee
When you successfully apply for an Askari MasterCard, we will not
charge you any Joining Fee. It’s almost like you are getting it for FREE!

o Global acceptability

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 Your card provides you with service at thousands of locations in Pakistan, and
at over 23 million establishments worldwide. As an added convenience, you
will have the benefit of receiving your monthly billing in Pak Rupees,
regardless of the currency of purchase.

• 24-Hours customer service

With Askari MasterCard, you are always a phone call away from the assistance
you need. To speak to one of our friendly Customer Service representatives,
please call our UAN 111-000-787 for Karachi, Lahore or Rawalpindi/ Islamabad.

• Low service charges

Your Askari MasterCard provides you the experience of revolving your spending
at comparatively low service charges. In addition, the same rate also applies to
cash advance obtained on your Askari MasterCard

• Zero loss Liability

Please report loss or theft of your Askari MasterCard immediately at our

Customer Services UAN 111-000-787 for Karachi, Lahore and
Rawalpindi/Islamabad. Once you have registered the loss of your credit card, your
liability against its fraudulent use will be limited and we will send a replacement
card within 48 hours of reporting.

• Cash advance facility

Cash advance facility is available for Askari MasterCard holders. You can get up
to 80% of your sanctioned credit limit as cash advance in Pakistan or anywhere
else in the world. The facility is available at all ATMs displaying the Cirrus logo
around the world and in Pakistan. You may also avail this facility at designated
branches of Askari Commercial Bank, during banking hours.

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 • Balance Transfer facility

With Askari MasterCard, you can avail an incredible offer of a Balance Transfer
at the exclusive rate of just 1.5%* per month.

• Free travel insurance

Just purchase your travel tickets on Askari MasterCard and you are automatically
covered under our Travel Insurance Plan (in case of personal accident resulting in
death or permanent disablement) for up to Rs.8,000,000/- on a Gold Card and
Rs.4,000,000/- on a Silver Card.

1.4.4. Agriculture Banking

The role of agriculture in Pakistan economy is of pivotal nature. Due to diverse

geographical and climatic conditions the country has tremendous potential for growth and
development in agriculture. However, adequate and timely financial assistance to the
farmers will improve production potential of agriculture sector in the country. The
modern concept of agricultural credit envisages establishment of an efficient institutional
credit system to serve as a package of credit, supplies and knowledge for the overall
strength of the farmers who at present suffer from low productivity and financial
insecurity. A successful credit evaluation system, therefore, should have the basic
ingredients to provide adequate amount at the right time and in the right form to help
farmers in making a productive use of loan funds.

Products

 Askari Kissan Ever Green Finance

 Askari Kissan Tractor Finance
 Askari Kissan Aabpashi Finance
 Askari Kissan Livestock Development Finance
 Askari Kissan Farm Mechanization Finance

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 Askari Kissan Farm Transport Finance
 Ask Card

2. Learning and Experience

One of the most important aims of the student life is to express him/herself correctly and
adequately. Secondly I wanted to apply the knowledge that I had gained during the
course of my studies while at Air University. This was the belief in my mind when I first
decided to go to Askari commercial Bank to complete my internship program.

2.1. Rational for Selection

I served Askari Bank Wah Cantt as an internee for some six weeks. As internship was a
compulsory requirement for the completion of my BBA degree so I observed feasibility
of joining any organization of well repute. Before starting my internship at Askari, I have
bundle of ideas about different organizations to join. But the point was which one to
choose. And I choose Askari Bank Ltd. Most of the organizations which I had idea about
were banks. One reason of selecting banking industry was the complete implementation
of BBA courses under one roof.

I choose Askari Bank Ltd. because of some definite reasons:

• My account is held by Askari Bank Ltd, so I have been having regularly visiting
to the bank. That’s why I have a bit more attachment to this bank than else.

• During my visits to Askari Bank at different places, I observed that all the
branches have a harmony in the setup or physical outlook of the branch which
insisted me to think about management’s nationwide organization and planning.

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 • Up till my internship at Askari Bank, which ever branch I visited, all were having
an ATM machine because of which I came to the conclusion that the bank is
utilizing modern technology at a rapid speed.

2.1.1 First week

I started my internship from "General Banking" in the first week. The General banking is
basically divided into the following sub departments, which are as follows:

• Account opening
• Bills and remittances
• Clearing
• Term deposit
• Cash department

The first day of exposure to the practical field was at the (sub department) Account
opening.

The relationship of customer starts with this department. Every one is not allowed to
come and open an account in the bank, for this purpose there should be an introducer who
himself is the account holder in the same branch. He has to introduce the new client by
signing the opening account form and then his signatures are verified.

Applicant's fills the account opening form and provides it to the bank with photocopy of
I.D. card and signatures card.

Then the banker inquires the about the option of opening a joint account or individual. If
the customer wants to open joint account then either it is "either or survivor" (i.e. only
one persons signature is sufficient) or jointly (i.e. both should sign the cheque).

Account opening
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Although the procedure of opening an account in a bank is a quite complicated job but I
am going to tell you only the basic necessities for opening the account, which are as
follows:

• Introduction
• National I.D. card
• Personal data
• Details of dealing with other banks.
These are some of the basic requirements for opening the account.

Issuance of chequebook

Once the account is opened, ACBL issues the cheque book to the customer so that they
could withdraw their money whenever they like. The producer of issuance of the
chequebook is as follows:

For the customer who already has an account with the bank, the lastly consumed
chequebook requisition slip with the help of which a new chequebook is issued. And the
person who is going to open a new account for the first time gets the chequebook free
without any requisition slip.

For the new depositors the cheque book is not issued at the time of opening of account,
rather it is issued after three days but, as the most of the customers are from the armed
forces so the usually get the cheque earlier. ACBL issues the cheque books for both the
local and foreign currency accounts.

I remained there in the account-opening department for one week and daily I learnt a new
thing

In the start I have stated the account opening procedure and issuance of cheque book in a
very comprehensive way, now let me tell u the further related detail of account opening

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 • First of all a customer come and gets the information regarding the opening of
account. After getting the proper information he gets an introducer and goes for
opening an account of any kind whatever he wants
• He fills the form regarding the opening of account which is in fact a request.
• S.S card is filled which contains the signature that will be used in future in order
to identify that you are the same particular person who perfectly eligible for
receiving the benefits.
• The S.S card and the application form are verified and the verification stamp is
imposed on it.
• After verification the application forms are pasted in the file with the serial, no
which is actually the account no. Allocated to the respective customers.
• The chequebook is issued to the customer after three days.
• A letter of thanks is posted to the customer as well as the introducer. The
introducer is thanked for the two perspectives. First he should be thanked that
because of him the bank get another customer and the second reason behind
sending the letter to him is that if the customer had fraudulently get the signature
of that person as an introducer then he should come to know that some one has
used his name as well as signature for his personal benefit and without the consent
of him (introducer).
• The procedure for opening the account comes to an end after sending the letter of
thanks.

Active and inactive Account

The account becomes Inactive if there is no debit transaction. Account becomes active if
there is credit transaction.

2.1.2 Second Week

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In the second week I was shifted to the TDR (Term Depots Receipts) department. It was
again a good experience to work with the officer here. First of all he told me about the
basics of the TDR.

Deposit is lifeblood of a commercial bank. The main function of a commercial bank is to

channelize the saving from the savers to the ultimate users of the funds. This process of
collecting saving is called "deposit mobilization".

Deposits are of two types one is the demand deposit and the other one is time deposit
(these have been explained in detail in the "department" portion). As the name signifies
the demand deposit is payable on demand so no interest or benefit is given on such
deposits but the time deposit is a kind of deposit, which gives you a benefit in terms of
cash. Most of the people who have surplus money with them especially the landlords
deposit their money in such accounts.

Term deposits are payable on demand with certain maturity. Different percentages of
profit are given in the time deposit (the detail is given in the Marketing Mix)

These are called fixed deposit because they are fixed and no transaction is allowed till
maturity. In fix deposit you can open an A/c of the same title only than A/c number will
be changed. While in other accounts the A/c can't be opened under the same title even in
other branch of the same Bank.

Record keeping

The record of the TDR is although feed in the computer but there is also a hard copy of
the record. The verified TDR forms are pasted with serial number of receipt given to the
customer (the receipt of the form regarding the deposit of the amount).

Askari Bachat Certificates are attached or pasted in the file according to the date. The
date may be of any month and any year i.e. if there is a card of the 8th then on this card
you will find the only 8th date of any month and any year in which the card was issued.

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 2.1.3. Third Week

In the third week of my internship I was shifted to the Clearing section and Bills for
collection section as well. Three days I worked with the "Clearing" and then with the
"Bills for collection" section.

Clearing

Meaning of clearing:

The word clearing has been derived from the word “Clear” and is defined as “a system by which
banks exchange cheques and other negotiable instruments draw on each other within a specified
area and thereby secure payment for their client through the clearing house at specified time” in
an efficient way.

Advantages of Clearing:

1. Since clearing does not involve any cash etc and the entire transaction take
place through book entries, the number of transactions can be unlimited.

2. No cash is needed as such the risks of robbery, embezzlements and pilferages

are totally eliminated.

3. As major payments are made through clearing, the banks can manage cash
payment at the counters with a minimum amount of cash in vaults.

4. A lot of time, cost and labour are saved.

5. Since it provides an extra service to the customers of banks without any service
charger or costs, more and more people are inclined and attracted towards
banking.

Clearing House:

It is a place where representatives of all scheduled banks sit together and interchange their claims
against each other with the help of controlling staff of State Bank of Pakistan and where there is
no branch of State Bank of Pakistan the designated branch of National Bank of Pakistan acts as
controlling member instead of State Bank of Pakistan.

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Working of clearing house:

All the bank which are the member of clearing house maintain accounts with State Bank of
Pakistan by debit and credit to which the clearing settlements are made. If on a particular day, a
bank delivers cheques and other negotiable instruments worth more than the total amount of
Cheque received by it that banks accounts with State Bank of Pakistan will be credited with the
differential amount. If on the other hand the total amount of cheques and other negotiable
instruments draw on a certain bank by other bank is more than the total amount receivable by it
from other banks, then this bank’s account will be debited on that day.

The cheque delivered to the representatives of other banks for clearing are called outward
clearing, whereas cheques received from the representatives of other banks for payment are
called inward clearing.

Procedure of Settlement:

Presume that ACBL got the cheques which are drawn on HBL, NBP and MCB for amounts Rs.
50,000/-, Rs. 15,000/- respectively, its total being amounts Rs.95,000/-, it means that this amount
is to be credited to ACBL A/C with S.B.P. on the other hand the cheques drawn on ACBL are
from HBL, NBP and MCB of Rs.15,000/-, Rs.75,000/- and Rs.30,000/- respectively, its total
being Rs.1,20,000/-, it means that this amount is to be debited from ACBL account. The
difference between Rs.95,000/- credit and debit Rs.1,20,000/- debit is Rs.25,000/- debit which
means the house is against ACBL for Rs.25,000/-.

If we separately show that

1. ACBL has t receive Rs.50, 000/- from HBL and to pay Rs.15, 000/- to HBL so
difference is Rs.35, 000/- credit.

2. ACBL has to receive Rs.30, 000/- from NBP and to pay Rs.75, 000/- to NBP so
difference is Rs.45, 000/- debit.

3. ACBL has to receive from MCB Rs.15, 000/- and to pay Rs.30, 000/- to MCB
so difference is Rs.15, 000/- debit.

GRAND TOTAL:

35000-45000-15000 = -25000

i.e. Rs.25000 debit.

Hence ACBL A/C with State Bank of Pakistan will be debited with Rs.25, 000/- and the contra
will be other banks accounts respectively. This called as Debit and Credit Rule”.
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Outward Clearing At The Branch:

The following points are to be taken into consideration while an instrument is accepted at the
counter to be presented in outward clearing:

1. The name of the branch appears on its face where it is drawn on

2. It should not be stale or post dated or without date

3. Amount in words and figures does not differ

4. Signature of the drawer appears on the face of instrument

5. Instruments is not mutilated

6. There should be no material alteration if so, it should be properly authenticated

7. If order instrument, suitably endorsed and last endorsee’s account being

credited

8. Endorsement is in accordance with the crossings if any

9. The amount of the instrument is same as mentioned on the paying-in-slip and

counterfoil

10. The title of account on the paying-in-slip is that of payee or endorsee (with the
exception of bearer cheque).

If an instrument is in order then out bank’s special crossing stamp is affixed across the
face of the instrument. Clearing stamps is affixed on the face of the instruments, paying-
in-slip and counterfoil (The stamp is affixed in such a manner that half appears on
paying-in-slip and half on counterfoil). The instrument is suitably discharged, where a
bearer cheque does not required any discharge and also an instrument in favor of a bank
need not be discharged. The instrument along with paying-in-slip is retained while the
counterfoil is given to the customer duly signed. Then the following steps are to be
taken:-

1. The particulars of the instruments and the pay-in-slip or credit vouchers

are entered in the Outward Clearing Register.

2. Serial number is given to each voucher

3. The register is balanced, the credit voucher are separated from the
instrument and are released to respective departments against instrument

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 and are released to respective departments against acknowledgement in
the register

4. The schedules are arranged bank-wise

5. The schedules are prepared in triplicate, two copies of which are

attached with the relevant instrument and the third is kept as office copy

6. The house page is prepared from schedules in triplicate

7. The schedules and house pages are signed by the officer in charge with
branch stamp

8. The grand total of the house page is taken and agreed with that of the
outward clearing register

9. The instruments along with duplicate and house page are sent to the
Main Office

Inward Clearing Of The Branch:

1. The particulars of the instruments are compared with the list

2. The instruments are detached and sort out department wise

3. The entry is made in the Inward Clearing Register (serial number, instrument
number, account number, amount of the instrument is written).

4. The instruments are sent to the respective departments against

acknowledgement in the Inward Clearing Register.

5. The instruments are scrutinized in each respect before honouring the same

2.1.4. Fourth Week

In the fourth week of internship I was transferred to the "Remittances department". I met
there with a quite sophisticated personality, she tells me about the issuance, procedure
and the entries of the demand drafts and pay orders.

Demand Draft

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It is an instrument payable on demand for which value has been received, issued by the
branch of the bank drawn. Demand draft is payable at some other branches of the same
bank. But Askari Bank contract with MCB so ACBL's demand draft is payable at MCB
also. Demand draft is very useful because there is no chance o fraud. The person deposit
cash and get demand draft. It is used for outstation payment.

Issuance of demand draft

On the application form following particulars are given:

• Name of beneficiary
• Amount
• Mode of payment
• The place where DD is drawn
• Signature
• Name and address of the beneficiary
Request shall be made on standard application form. The customer writes his name,
address, I.D number, and phone number on the backside of the application form.
Commission is charged as per schedule of charges. The issuance of DD is computerized
and the amount is automatically protecting graphed drawing printing for the avoidance of
forgery.

The withholding tax and excise duty is deducted as per schedule. When the customer
depots cash in the cash department, he got voucher from the cash department and gave it
to the person who makes the DD.

Payment of DD

When a person brings DD (which have been drawn on you), you will check it from your
DD payable record and ask the customer to sign twice at the back of the DD so that it
could be confirmed that he is the eligible person for receiving the benefit, along with this
you obtain the ID of that person verify it and then make the payment. After making the
payment, entry is made in the register that this DD has been paid.
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DD payable register

Every day you receive an IBCA from different banks and it contains a list of DDs, which
have been drawn on you. Banker records it in DD payable register. These DD are those,
which other branches have drawn on your bank.

Payment of DD from Suspense A/c

The payment of DD is made from the suspense account in the following cases:

• The amount of DD is paid from suspense a/c if advice is not received yet.
• If a DD is to be cancelled on the wish of the customer, in such a case the payment
will be made from suspense A/c.
Cancellation of DD

Following procedure is followed for the cancellation of the DD:

• Obtain the application in writing for the cancellation of DD along with the
original DD.
• Verify the signature of the applicant, which should tally, with the signature on the
application form (for opening the DD).
• Mark caution on DD issued register or on computerized entry.
• Make the payment from suspense account.
• Inform the Drawee bank regarding the cancellation and ask for IBCA. Inter
Branch Credit Advice is the advice regarding the payment (refund) of the amount
which Drawer bank have sent to them (which was deposited by the customer
against the demand draft).
• When a demand draft is made, an IBCA is sent to the Drawee bank regarding the
payment.

Types of DD

DD’s are of the following types:

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 • Crossed DD: In the case of crossed DD the amount is deposited to the A/c of the
beneficiary.
• Open DD: Incase of open DD the amount is handed over to the beneficiary at the
cash counter.

Telegraphic Transfer

The transfer of funds from one branch to another branch of the same bank is called
telegraphic transfer. The bank apply test on telegraphic transfer. The applicant receives
Commission and charges, if the Applicant’s account is in ACBL, he pays no charge
above Rs. 100,000/-

If he has no account in the ACBL then he has to pay charges according to the amount e.g.
for Rs. 100,000/- the charges are Rs. 250/-

If the account of beneficiary is in another bank, his bank will present The TT to ACBL
through for payment.

Pay Order

Pay order issued from one branch can only be payable from the same branch. Pay order is
used for same city payment. E.g. If ACBL (Main Branch) issued pay order it is only
payable for Main Branch of ACBL.

Procedure

• Applicant fill the application

• After paying charges he gets voucher and pay order is issued
• All pay orders shall be crossed "payee's A/c only".

Cancellation

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 • The applicant give application for cancellation
• Charges are recovered from the applicant.

2.1.5. Fifth Week

In the second last week of my internship I worked in the "Accounts section".

Account Section

I worked in accounts department but as it is a confidential department so they did not

give me enough information regarding their working. First day I sorted out the cheques of
ACBL with the help of the serial number and the nature of the account and arrange them
in sequence. After that I checked the activity which contains the title of the cheque,
amount, date etc. Accounts department maintains the record of expenses of all the
departments, it also maintain the record of all the employees regarding their basic salary,
increment, benefits etc. It is the backbone of ACBL

On the next day I worked in the mail dispatch section, the person appointed here asked
me to arrange the letters and to write the mailing address on the envelopes and then to put
the letters into the envelops. It was an interesting job but, the single thing which I learned
from here was that, I learnt by heart the addresses of many branches of the ACBL, which
helped me to know the extensive branch network of the Bank. On the following day I
repeated the same job and did nothing else.

2.1.6. Sixth Week

In the last week I was shifted to the "foreign exchange" department. For the first three
days I worked there but in the last three days I was shifted again to the account-opening
department due to the absence of one of the Account opening officer. Therefore I was
sent back to the account-opening department.

2.2. Swot Analysis of Askari commercial Bank

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 Strengths

Leading Private sector Bank

Askari commercial bank is the leading private sector bank in the banking network
in Pakistan with many of them online branches in major cities of the country

• Full day Banking

One can avail the benefit of the services provided at the bank till 5:00 P.m. which
is highly useful for those customers who find it difficult to leave their officers in
the morning.
• Atm Network

The bank has the largest ATM Network cross the country. The customers of
ACBL withdraw access their funds any time at all the ATM Sites with
ASKCASH Logo.

• Customized solutions

The management of the bank believes in customer focused banking rather than the
product oriented banking. The products and services designed by the bank are
specifically tailored to the individual needs of its customers.

• Electronic Banking

The revolution in the banking in the form of electronic banking operations have
opened avenues of excellent, efficient and quick services saving the time and
costs of the customers and fortunately ACBL is among those few banks who are
already reaping the benefits of electronic transactions.

Electronic Funds Transfer

ACBL management is quite prepared to adopt the latest advancements in

technology resulting in revolution in the banking operations such as check
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 clearing process, computer based teller equipment, automatic teller machines, and
electronic funds transfers among the others.

Phone Banking

Phone banking service is very attractive for those classes of customers who don’t
have time to personally come to the bank i.e. banking on the phone line thus
saving the precious time of the customers.

Weaknesses

In my opinions these are the points that might be detrimental to the efficiency and
profitability of the bank.

Not Highly Automated

The bank has still some of the traditional ways of operations in this advanced
technological environment.

Manual Book Keeping

Although the bank has computerized accounting system but, still the bankers use
to make their entries in the accounting register.

Low Job Satisfaction

Understanding and the effective management of the human resources is the most
difficult challenge faced not only by the bank but by all the organizations. Even
though the people have been sacrificed in the new organizational developments, it
is becoming clear that the true lasting competitive advantage comes through
human resources and how they are managed. ACBL seems to not focusing on this
highly critical issue as the job satisfaction level of the employees working at
ACBL, was quite low.

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Lack of Specialization
This famous and useful concept given by Adam Smith in 1776 seems to be
missing in the bank. The employees are constantly rotated from one job to another
job of totally different characteristic in the view of giving them the know-how of
the working in all the departments. But I think this is not a very good tactics used
by the management. Otherwise the situation might be like this ‘Jack of all and
master of none.’

Centralization
There is a high degree of centralization in the bank. Almost all the decision-
making is in the hands of the upper management. But centralization is effective up
to a certain level otherwise it becomes inefficient and at times costly too. I
personally observed that delay occurred in the operations of the employees only
due to the fact that they had not got any instructions from the head office.

Lack of Training Facilities

Presently there is no specific training program arranged for the new recruiters.
They have to learn based on their observations and also their mistakes. It takes a
bit time for the fresh one to learn the banking the result is huge amount of
blunders, mistakes etc. resulting in monetary and non-monetary losses for the
bank. There is pressure not only on the new learner but also on the person placed
upon with this responsibility.

Opportunities
Apart from the ones discussed in External Factors Evaluation Matrix, the bank is facing
the following threats and opportunities currently:

These are positive external environmental factors effecting the organization.

• It deals in bulk business.

• A large amount of foreign investment is attracted.
• Strong potential for growth
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• Steady increase in Customer Deposits
• Overseas Operations
• Branches In Remote Areas
• Islamic Banking
• Sharp increase in imports and exports

Threats
• High Employee turnover

As discussed above, the job satisfaction level of the employee is very low
resulting in high turnover, which is bad for any organization as there are huge
monetary and non-monetary costs involved in the fresh recruitments.

• High charges

• The schedules of charges indicate that the fees charged by the bank on the various
services it provides are extremely high. It may result in decrease in the number of
its exiting customers. Further more, this could be very alarming situation for the
bank in case some of the competitors grasped the opportunity and lowered its
rates.

• Less attractive rate of return

Commercial banks face considerable competition in attracting deposits from

individuals or small investors. In contrast, the Govt. of Pakistan national saving
scheme offers attractive rates of return (approx. 16 to 18 percent annually) on 10-
15 year fixed accounts, which banks find difficult to match.

2.3. RECOMMENDATIONS
• All the departments should work as a team not as individuals, so, that the whole
branch would get benefit out of it. So, there is a lack of teamwork.

35
• As they lack international presence, so it’s better for them to take advantage from
international banks and try to adopt their policies and strategies to be in their line.
• I believe more incentives should be given to the human resource to keep them
committed to their bank. Such incentives can be in the form of bonuses for those who
performed really well for a time span of 2 or 3 consecutive months. Job rotation of
such capable employees is another good idea in which officers should be given
different tasks (job rotation) or multiple tasks (job enlargement) to ensure the officials
that they are an important asset for the multinational organization. Such measure
would also make them know where exactly do they stand and what exactly are they
doing for the Bank.
• If leadership to some extent becomes decentralized, employees would have a free
hand to make certain decisions according to their own work experience. Employees if
given a free hand can at times come up to certain procedures which are less time
consuming and more beneficial for the whole organization. Such procedures /
methods can later on be implemented for the whole bank to be followed which would
in turn increase the efficiency level of Askari Bank. Similarly, it would initiate other
employees to come onto certain measures which should be implemented amongst the
whole organization.
• The reference based criteria should not be followed for recruitment of employee.
Incompetent workers cause damage to bank’s repute and smooth flow of branch.
• Although technology, bank currently owns is in working condition, but it often
crashes so its better that Askari Bank adopts new and modern mechanisms for
maintaining its technology as some times systems get hanged. The software and
hardware, which is called as ‘System’, of the bank should be upgraded. Better
computer specialists should be hired to program a new system as I found out that
majority of the problems are occurring because of up gradation and changes in the
current system.
• Adopt more aggressive marketing strategy and should be proactive in social causes.
Right now the bank plays little or no role in social causes whereas its competitors are
actively participating.
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 • There should be some training system for internees and also some reward system for
internees so that to motivate them for high performance and low absentees.

2.4. CONCLUSION

This internship experience has been very much informative for me as it helped me in
numerous ways like in learning new things and ideas about official environment and now
I have the knowledge and experience of working in office environment. I have realized
my abilities and expertise of working in that kind of environment. Internship is a
supervised pre-professional career related experience paid or unpaid, part or full time,
with measurable learning objectives and formal evaluation.

Askari Bank Ltd will remain an aggressive and innovative financial institution and
continue to adhere to the tradition of understanding its customer’s needs and looking for
new ways to serve them. Further integration and productivity gains will result in stronger
performance in terms of revenue as well as service quality in the coming years. The
strong leadership of Board and management and the relentless effort of the staff at Askari

37
Bank Ltd will be able to offer more superior products and services to customers and to
contribute more to economic and social development of Pakistan while developing a
bigger future for it.

Askari Bank views specialization and service excellence as the cornerstone of its
strategy. The people of bank innovation, creativity, reliability, customized services and
their execution are the key ingredients for their future growth. Based on this approach,
their Treasury Division and the Structured Finance Unit have been geared to provide
specialized services to the corporate customers. Revenues from these activities have
started yielding dividends and they expect significant growth in these areas in the coming
years. While building on their in-depth familiarity with their customers’ needs and
anticipated developments in the banking industry, the Retail and Corporate areas of their
operations will continue to provide a strong and stable base to the business of the Bank.

They are aware that they have stepped into the 21st century and they must meet its
challenges by acquiring the highest levels of Technology. They will thus be accelerating
their enable them distribute their products and services through most efficient and high-
tech means. They say that they will invest in the modern tools and substantial allocation
of resources will be made to achieve this objective during the current year. Their focus
would be to constantly seek out growth opportunities through increased quality assets and
by offering a wider range of products and services to their esteemed customers. There are
significant growth opportunities for ASKARI BANK and they are confident in their
ability to grasp them. They are committed to enhancing the shareholder’s value and look
forward with greater optimism to a prosperous future for ASKARI BANK.

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REFERENCES:

1. http://www.askaribank.com/

2. http://www.google.com.pk/

3. www.askaribank.com/creditcards/index.asp

4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Askari

5. Brochure- ACBL Awards & Achievements

6. Economic Bulletin, Vol. 34, No.5 September – October 2008, published Bi-monthly by

Economic Research Wing, Askari Bank Ltd

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7. Economic Bulletin, March-June 2008, published bi-monthly by Economic Research

Wing, Askari Bank ltd.

8. ACBL News lines, s Newsletter January 2008

40