World's Highest ATM NBP — Local services in Upper Hunza Tehsil

Imagine driving amid pristine mountains dotting the Pakistan-China border, over 15,000 feet above sea level, and needing cash urgently. There is no need to panic, as the “World’s Highest ATM” is in the vicinity. It will not just address your currency crunch but accept your bill payments too. The ATM, claimed the World’s Highest by National Bank of Pakistan, is located at Khunjerab Pass on the mostly snow-capped part of Pakistan-China border at an altitude of 15,397 feet above the sea level. Khunjerab Pass or Khunjerav is situated in the Karakoram Mountains on the northern border of Pakistan’s Gilgit–Baltistan Hunza – Nagar District on the southwest border of the Xinjiang region of China. As one can imagine, installing and maintaining this machine isn’t an easy task for the bank. “The initiative faced several challenges of construction and delivery at high altitude. But we are very thankful to our local team, Pakistan Army and local authorities for their support,” said Ovais Asad Khan, Divisional Head, and Strategic Marketing Division. According to Khan, the project was undertaken after seeking guidance and height requirement from the Guinness Book of World Records. As part of the bank’s Green-Initiative, the ATM is powered by renewable energy, i.e. solar power and wind turbine. It is open 24/7. Besides tourists, who routinely need to replenish cash, the ATM is also popular with the local population and has become a landmark in the area. “The ATM is on the main highway and starting point of CEPEC (China Pakistan Economic Corridor). This is a very popular tourist site as well and withdrawals are mostly done by tourists,” Khan said. Sheharzad Kaleem, who visited the area recently as a tourist, was very surprised to find an ATM at such an altitude where there is little else in the surroundings. “I was not expecting an ATM machine at this height. I didn’t need to use it but thought about it just for fun. To be honest, I also didn’t find anyone using the machine,” she said. Kaleem said she found the idea a great marketing gimmick but was not convinced about its utility. “I didn’t understand the need for it in the middle of the snow where there is hardly anything else. Also, the next town after this pass is Sost which has several ATM machines,” said the tourist who is...

This is a very beautiful place but oxygen level in the air is very low coz of more than 16000 feet above the sea level. There could be a difficulty for the patients related respiratory diseases e.g. Asthma or bronchitis allergy. Another thing is that we can get cash from ATM but there is unavailability of any types of shops or petrol stations. So keep this thing in mind before going there. But above all the place is heaven on earth and meant to be seen...

World highest ATM National Bank of Pakistan, (NBP) The ATM has been installed at a height of 16,007 feet above sea level, making it world’s highest-altitude ATM anywhere in the world. The award is in recognition with the bank’s efforts in bringing superior technology, products and services to their customers in all areas of Pakistan, including the northern, rural and...