Islamabad – May 14, 2024: Garaj, Pakistan's fastest-growing local cloud service provider, has partnered with Mashreq Pakistan, a part of Mashreq which is the leading financial institution in the MENA region, for provisioning of data center hosting services, to support Mashreq’s ambition to revolutionize the digital banking landscape in the country. The partnership marks the convergence of cutting-edge technology and visionary strategy, aimed at delivering unparalleled digital park services hosted in Pakistan’s largest Tier-3 certified data center.

Khurram Abid, Chief Information Officer, Mashreq Pakistan and Asif Aziz, Chief Business Officer, Jazz, signed the partnership agreement at a special signing ceremony that was also attended by Mohamed Abdel Razek, Group Head of Technology, Transformation & Information, Mashreq, Muhammad Hamayun Sajjad, Chief Executive Officer, Mashreq Pakistan along with senior officials from Jazz.

Through next-gen data center solutions, reliable infrastructure, business continuity, nationwide connectivity, and disaster recovery, Garaj will help Mashreq Pakistan harness the full potential of its data, unlocking new opportunities for growth and transformation. By leveraging the robust infrastructure of Jazz Digital Park, Pakistan's largest Tier-3 data center, Mashreq Pakistan will be able to scale its digital banking operations in the country in compliance with the Digital Regulatory Framework issued by the State Bank of Pakistan.

Mashreq is actively progressing towards acquiring a restricted license from the State Bank of Pakistan to initiate pilot digital retail banking operations in Pakistan.

Mohamed Abdel Razek, Group Head of Technology, Transformation & Information, Mashreq, said, “We are thrilled to partner with Garaj to address our data hosting and cybersecurity requirements. As we embark on this collaboration, we eagerly anticipate harnessing Garaj's expertise to not only navigate but also contribute to Pakistan's rapidly evolving digital banking landscape.”

Commenting on the partnership, Muhammad Hamayun Sajjad, Chief Executive Officer, Mashreq Pakistan, said, “Mashreq has been able to achieve global digital transformation and deliver tangible results for all its stakeholders – all backed by its DNA of innovation and its agile operating model. The partnership with Garaj marks another significant milestone in Mashreq Pakistan’s digital innovation journey in Pakistan and underlines our commitment to driving digitization and financial inclusion in the country.”

“We're thrilled to announce our strategic partnership with Mashreq Pakistan, a pivotal step in Garaj's commitment to driving innovation in the digital sphere. Through this collaboration, Garaj will provide Mashreq Pakistan with Jazz Digital Park’s unparalleled infrastructure for secure and reliable data hosting. Aligned with Jazz's DO1440 strategy, we're poised to drive digital innovation and transform the country’s financial landscape together,” said Asif Aziz, Chief Business Officer of Jazz.

Mashreq Pakistan’s nationwide sites will be seamlessly connected through Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) and internet connectivity solutions provided by Garaj. This will enable the Bank to streamline its network infrastructure and enhance its digital operations. Furthermore, Garaj will establish a robust long-haul connectivity network between the Bank's primary and disaster recovery sites to bolster resilience against potential disruptions and minimize downtime.

Aligned with the national cloud policy by Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunications (MOITT), Garaj offers Pakistani enterprises data sovereignty and compliance, low latency, improved performance, enhanced security and control, improved data governance, enhanced reliability and availability, and support for local economic growth. The platform also serves as an excellent alternative for businesses seeking to migrate their data to resident cloud networks.