Indira Mallela

Having worked in multiple countries for almost seven years, I have familiarity and deeper understanding of the successful project implementation, financial context and regulation of various countries and familiarity with donor and regulatory reporting structures. My experience and expertise lie with project management of donor funded projects, working with financial institutions such as commercial banks, microfinance institutions, wholesale and retail lending institutions. Being the head of treasury function in Azizi Bank in Kabul, I could successfully create a new vertical for revenue generation and managed a portfolio of investments for the Bank. Liaising with international stakeholders has been the crucial tasks for the role I perform. I was instrumental in making technological advancements for the department for smooth operations by way of configuring treasury modules in Oracle Flexcube (ERP for Banks). Additionally, I was also responsible for ensuring compliance with regulators on various aspects of the Bank. I am also entrusted with holding crucial board meetings of ALCO and Investment Committee apart from being a member of the Board of Management. I am also a member and chair of the treasury committee within ABA (Afghanistan Banks Association) wherein I have contributed immensely for development of Repo Regulation for the central bank (Da Afghanistan Bank). I have a master’s degree in commerce and accountancy from Osmania University in India. I am a certified Management Accountant and a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), UK and hold certification from CPA Australia. I have completed CFA level II and pursuing level III now (Chartered Financial Analyst). I have extensive experience in working in finance filed. I have worked in the areas of finance, Fixed Income Investments, project management, financial inclusion, micro credit, micro insurance, SME finance and SME product development etc. I am also a certified project manager (PRINCE2 Advanced, UK) and well versed with managing complex development projects. I am also familiar with writing fund raising proposals, successfully oversee implementation and post project evaluation. In the past I have successfully managed UNCDF funded MicroLead projects in Timor Leste, Bhutan and Ethiopia while working with BASIX group in India. During the time I worked with the First Microfinance Bank (FMFB) in Tajikistan I was responsible for research, product development marketing and strategy. The job demands periodic reporting to donors of donor funded projects (financial and other), preparation of annual budgets, variance analysis, setting up of new systems and policies, maintenance of statutory books. I was also coordinating with rating agencies such as MicroFinanza and M-CRIL as part of fulfilment of some of the project objectives. Two of the major assignments I undertook upon joining FMFB was conducting a nation-wide financial literacy program (in Tajikistan) and analysing costs based on activity-based costing and advise the bank on cost cutting. I have chalked the digital strategy for FMFB and piloted a digital money product. I have also managed two projects i) Digital financial product development and launch ii) Remittance Linked Savings Mobilization at FMFB. I have experience in working in multiple countries (Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Kyrgyzstan, India, Nepal and Bhutan). I have worked on multiple assignments from international funding organizations such as KFW, Ford Foundation, UNDP, UNCDF, IFC, ILO, and AKFC. Development of strategic partnerships is a key skill I have acquired over years. I have a Certificate in Digital Money from the Digital Frontiers Institute (top achiever) and certifications in developing rural and urban livelihoods, data analytics, Taxes (USA), SME (Frankfurt School, Germany). I have experience in managing Treasury functions for Non-banking finance company. During my earlier career, I have headed Treasury department of one of the biggest Microfinance companies in India and was responsible for overseeing funding for 300+ branches for lending daily and invest liquid funds in mutual funds and place in banks. I have worked in multi-cultural environment.