- Digital payments hit RS1TR every nine days: SBP Governor
- Transfers to become faster and more secure under Buna.
- SBP is targeted at a cashless economy nationwide by June 2026.
Islamabad: Pakistan has decided to integrate its digital payment system with the Arab world’s Buna Platform operated by Arab Monetary Fund (AMF), The news reported.
The event will enable cross -border transactions, but allows only influx from overseas Pakistanis without a provision of outgoing transfers.
The development was revealed during a meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee for Funding, led by Syed Naveed Qamar, in an IT park in Islamabad on Thursday.
Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan Jameel Ahmed informed the NA panel that transactions under the digital payment system were hovering around the RS1 trillion brand on an annual basis when Raast was launched, but now crosses the amount of transactions under the digital payment system RS1 billion mark of nine days.
Buna is the Arab regional payment system, a cross-border, multi-currency platform owned by the Arab Monetary Fund (AMF), which allows financial institutions to send and receive payments in Arab and international currencies throughout the Arab region and beyond.
It was launched in 2020 and supports currencies such as Saudi Riyal and Emirati Dirham with future plans to incorporate currencies from other countries, such as China, to improve regional economic integration and cross -border trade.
In ordering the NA panel, the SBP Governor said the new event would make transfers faster and safer. He added that the goal in 2028 is to provide 75% of Pakistan’s youth with digital financial services, while a cashless economy will be introduced to federal and provincial level by June 2026.
SBP, he said, has already issued five licenses for digital payments, while digital transactions are not subject to the 0.5% commercial fees.
Prime Minister for Financing Bilal Azhar Kayani told the committee that the government would absorb the cost of encouraging the adoption of digital payments, stressing that Pakistan would become one of the first countries in the region rolling out such a digital ecosystem.
Financial Secretary Imdadullah Bosal informed members that wages, pensions, taxes and utility bills will gradually be moved to the cashless system.
However, SBP clarified that in the case of user errors in digital transactions, banks would not compensate, while losses due to fraud or system error would be covered by the respective service providers if the complaint was filed within two hours of any fraud.
Deputy Governor SBP Saleem Ullah said while informing the NA panel that there are currently 95 million active mobile banking users, 226 million bank accounts (96 million unique), 19,000 bank branches and 20,000 ATMs nationwide, while 850,000 QR purchasers are already integrated.
He added that the $ channels allow transactions, even without internet access, and consumers will not be charged for cashless payments. During the meeting, Naveed Qamar raised concerns about the effectiveness of the digital ecosystem as “50% of Pakistan’s economy is undocumented,” and emphasized the need for offline transaction support.
Hina Rabbani Khar raised the issue of slower Internet services and asked how the digital and cashless economy would be promoted with serious internet disorders.
The Committee also reviewed the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) proposal. The SECP chairman stated that in 2024, 315 out of 447 companies completed CSR activities and used RS 22 billion, while 199 companies did not share details and 100 did not use anything.
He said that CSR is a responsibility but not yet mandatory, but a penalty of RS 1 billion has been placed for non-evidence. Members proposed to make CSR consumption mandatory and formed a subcommittee for further discussion.
Meanwhile, FBR chairman Rashid Langrial said that CSR blossomed mainly due to tax credits, as charity expenses are exempt from taxation. The committee also expressed dissatisfaction with the National Electric Vehicle Policy 2025-30 and called officials from the Ministry of Industries and Production to a detailed orientation at the next meeting.
In another development, Pakistan is prepared to repay $ 500 million on the maturity of a Eurobond before September 30, 2025, coinciding with the IMF Review Mission’s visit to Islamabad for the second review during the extended fund facility (EFF). Pakistan and the IMF are scheduled to hold review interviews from September 25 to the first week of October during the $ 7 billion event.
“We have made agreements to repay the $ 500 million Eurobond by September 30, and this repayment will not strive for foreign exchange reserves,” said Jameel Ahmed, Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan, during a brief conversation with journalists after a meeting of the National Assembly Committee on Funding in Parliament House.
Highly official sources indicated that the governor’s insurance on no burden on currency reserves suggests that Islamabad either expects foreign influx or that the central bank continues to buy dollars from the market to secure timely repayments.
Of the $ 26 billion in external repayments due in the financial year 2025-26, $ 3.5 billion has already been paid. Dollars. Of the remaining repayments, $ 9 billion consists of deposits from friendly countries that are expected to be rolled over in a timely manner.
Given the increased obligations for repayment in 2025-26, Pakistan has decided to enter the international capital market by issuing international bonds, including Panda bonds in the Chinese market.
The launch of a Eurobond or Sukuk bond seems unlikely as it depends on the international demand for the market and further improvements in Pakistan’s credit rating with at least one notch from three reputable agencies.
The Panda bond is expected to be launched by December 2025, with the first transaction expected to be in the range $ 200- $ 250 million. Two major repayments in Eurobond are due in 2025. The first worth $ 500 million, matured in September 2025.
It was issued in 2015 for 10 years at an interest rate of 8.25%. The second, worth $ 1 billion, matures in April 2026. It was issued in April 2021 for five years with a rate of 6%, according to a senior official from the Financial Division.
Another repayment of debt for an international bond issued in April 2021 worth $ 1 billion will mature in 2031 with an interest rate of 7.3%. In addition, the government issued an international bond in January 2022 to raise $ 1 billion for seven years, which will mature in 2029.
