Significant increase noted in Digital Retail Payments in Pakistan
The Governor of the State Bank of
Pakistan (SBP), Jameel Ahmad, announced on Wednesday that the share of digital
payments in total retail payments by volume has risen significantly, climbing
from 76% in FY23 to 84% in FY24. Additionally, the total number of digital
retail transactions increased by 30% during the same period.
Addressing the 13th Bank of the
Future Forum, Governor Ahmad highlighted the rapid growth in digital payments,
with mobile and internet banking transactions growing annually by 70% and 30%,
respectively. He attributed this to the tech-savviness of Pakistan's
predominantly young population.
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The governor reaffirmed SBP’s
dedication to promoting innovation and digitalization within the banking
sector, positioning it for future growth. He noted that technological
advancements have not only allowed banks to offer innovative services but also
enabled regulators to enhance compliance through sophisticated data processing
tools.
Governor Ahmad also highlighted the
SBP's efforts to expand the financial services landscape. In 2022, the central
bank introduced a framework for establishing Digital Banks in Pakistan,
granting in-principle approvals to five applicants who will soon begin pilot
operations.
He shared that Pakistan now has 59
million branchless banking wallets, 19 million mobile banking app users, 3.7
million e-money wallets, and 12 million internet banking users. These
advancements are a result of SBP's digital transformation journey, which began
in 2002 with the implementation of the Temenos and ERP systems, followed by the
introduction of the Real-Time Gross Settlement System (PRISM) in 2008.
Recently, the SBP launched a state-of-the-art Tier-3 data center, the first of
its kind in the country.
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The governor also mentioned SBP's
regulations for branchless banking services, issued in 2008, which helped
increase the number of unique bank accounts from 16% of the adult population in
2018 to 64% in 2024.
Highlighting the success of Raast,
Pakistan's ISO-20022-based instant payment system launched in 2021, Governor
Ahmad stated that Raast has processed approximately 850 million transactions
worth over PKR 19 trillion in just three years. Today, with 38 million unique
Raast IDs, the system handles an average of 2.5 million transactions daily. SBP
is also working to integrate Raast with the Arab Monetary Fund’s Buna system to
facilitate remittances for Pakistanis living in Arab countries.
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The governor concluded by praising
the vibrant fintech sector in Pakistan and encouraging the IT industry to
continue driving innovation in the financial space. The event, focusing on 'The
Future of Banking,' was organized by Systems Limited and featured prominent
industry leaders and fintech experts discussing the evolving global banking
landscape.
Source: Urdu Point