Pakistanis have made record 296.7 million e-banking transactions, valuing at Rs21.4 trillion during the Oct-Dec 2020 quarter. This has shown a significant boom in the online bank transactions and is believed to have increased owing to Covid outbreak.
The data is revealed in the State Bank of Pakistan report titled “Quarterly Payment System Review” for the second quarter (Oct-Dec) of fiscal year 2020-21.
SI Global CEO Noman Ahmed said,
“It is a moment of pride for us as a nation to see such a remarkable growth in this sector.”
During the Oct-Dec 2020 quarter, 296.7 million e-banking transactions, valuing at Rs21.4 trillion, were made. The transactions registered a growth of 24% in volumes and 22% in value compared to the same quarter of last year.
Point-of-Sale (POS) machines grew by 18% in 3 months, reaching 62,480 throughout Pakistan
SBP report
Most of the rise in e-banking transactions was seen in internet and mobile banking.
DH Corporation Research Lead Karim Punjani commented,
“Owing to Covid-19, it is no surprise that the country has seen a boom in digital financial transactions,” he said.
He further added that for most of the people before 2020, e-banking was a difficult process to handle, which carried with it significant security risks as well.
“Coronavirus lockdown was a forceful phenomenon, but it is now turning into a normal thing.”
The volume of mobile banking transactions stood at 44 million, up 147%, valuing at Rs1.12 trillion, up 192% in the quarter under review compared to 17.8 million transactions valuing at Rs382.5 billion in the same quarter of last year.
The number of registered mobile phone banking users reached 9.4 million, an increase of 5%. Similarly, 22 million internet banking transactions valuing at Rs1.3 trillion were recorded during the Oct-Dec 2020 quarter compared to transactions worth Rs1.1 trillion in the previous quarter.
In response to SBP’s measures to incentivize the installation of Point-of-Sale (POS) machines to facilitate digital payments through debit or credit cards, the number of POS machines grew 18% during the quarter under review, reaching 62,480 throughout the country, the report said.
With the help of these POS machines, 23 million transactions amounting to Rs115 billion were processed during the second quarter of FY21, which shows the positive impact of conducive policies adopted by the central bank, particularly targeted at increasing the payment acceptance infrastructure in the country.
