During a recent Senate Standing Committee on Finance meeting, it was disclosed that Pakistani citizens have left an astounding Rs97 billion unclaimed in dormant bank accounts. This significant sum is distributed across 10.4 million accounts that have been temporarily closed in banks throughout the country.
The meeting, presided over by Senator Saleem Mandviwala, highlighted that these accounts have remained inactive for the past decade. Officials from the State Bank of Pakistan informed the committee of these funds, noting that many account holders appear to have forgotten about the money in their accounts.
It was suggested during the briefing that the current 10-year period, after which such accounts are considered permanently closed, be extended to 15 years. Under current regulations, if an account remains inactive for 10 years and the account holder fails to respond to three notices, the funds are transferred to the State Bank.
Despite the prolonged inactivity, millions of account holders still contact banks to reactivate their accounts, indicating the need for a more flexible approach to reactivation.
The committee approved the State Bank’s proposal to allow the reactivation of temporarily closed accounts, enabling citizens to reclaim their forgotten funds. This move is expected to offer relief to many account holders and potentially stimulate economic activity.
