State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has recently issued a report that emphasizes towards revolutionalizing digital financial services in the country and boosting financial inclusion. The report states that Pakistan has over 145 million cellphone connections and among the entire population a massive 48 million people have 3G/4G/LTE connectivity.
According to the report, branchless banking by SBP is allowing people to receive and send remittances without a bank for over a decade now. The report estimates, by the year 2025, the market potential of digital financial services in Pakistan will cross $36 billion. This will result in 7% boost to GDP and will create employment opportunities for four million Pakistanis.
SBP plans to launch Asaan Mobile Account (AMA) Scheme for low-income communities which will enable them to open an account and use financial services via an interoperable platform. This AMA scheme will provide the necessary infrastructure but it needs an enabling environment which will be provided by the Innovation Challenge Facility.
The major aim of Innovation Challenge Facility is to provide opportunities to financial institutions (FI’s) as well as non-financial institutions to make use of digital financial products or services. The objective of the first batch of proposals in this regard is to adopt and upgrade AMA scheme.