Page 3 - Payment System Review -Q2 FY24

Executive Summary

Pakistan’s payments infrastructure demonstrated robust growth during the quarter, bolstered by
RTGS system, Raast faster payment system, and SBP regulated payment system operators and service

providers. Pakistan has 44 banks/MFBs providing conventional as well digital services through various
channels. Among these, 31 banks/MFBs also provide mobile app based banking, catering to a user

base of 16 million, while 32 banks/MFBs offer internet banking services with 11 million users.
Additionally, 16 banks have embraced branchless banking, serving 67 million mobile app based wallet

users. Furthermore, 5 Electronic Money Institutions (EMIs) contribute to the digital payments
ecosystem, collectively serving around 2.7 million e-wallet users. Regarding Raast, approximately 35

million Raast IDs have been registered by the quarter end. After Raast Bulk Payments and P2P use
cases, SBP has now launched Raast P2M model allowing users to make direct payments to the

merchants through Raast.

Payments infrastructure currently comprises of a network of 18,441 ATMs, 121,789 Point-of-Sale

(POS) machines and 7,630 e-merchants (registered with banks) facilitating digital transactions initiated
through 59 million cards issued by banks, BBs and EMIs to their customers. Notably, PayPak, a

domestic payment scheme in Pakistan, commands a considerable presence, accounting for 15% of the
total issued cards.

In Pakistan, RTGS system processes large value financial transfers and settlements, whereas Raast and
PSOs/PSPs are the channels for Retail Payments, based on transaction's nature and customer's

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preference. During 2 quarter of FY24, 82% of retail transactions were conducted digitally as
compared to 80% in previous quarter showing a continued increase in adoption of digital payments.

Conversely, in terms of value, 85% of retail payments were conducted at Over-the-Counter (OTC) and

only 15% through digital channels.

During the current review, four major trends stand out. First, consistent adoption of mobile app and

internet banking which is evident by the increasing number of users and transactions through these
channels. Together, these two channels constitute the largest share of 50% in total digital transactions.

This trend is expected to continue due to increasing adoption of Raast by these channels. Second trend
is the increase in Raast’s usage. In the current quarter, volume of transactions processed via Raast

reached to 107 million amounting to more than PKR 2 trillion, while since its inception in January 2021,
Raast has processed a cumulative 343 million transactions, with a cumulative value exceeding PKR 7

trillion. This aggressive and continued build up in the growth momentum of Raast shows that it is
becoming a game-changer for digitizing payments ecosystem in the country. Thirdly, E-wallets issued

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