Payment Systems Review for FY24
Executive Summary
The national payment ecosystem has seen significant advancements over the past few years, driven by the increasing accessibility and adoption of digital payment channels. The continued growth of digital payments reflects a strong reliance by customers on digital payment systems, with new and innovative products and services offered by Electronic Money Institutions (EMIs) and Branchless Banking (BB) players. The introduction of QR-based payments through Raast will reduce the cost of digital payments at merchants and retail stores, contributing to the expansion of digital payments.
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) publishes this report to highlight these developments and provide a comprehensive overview of the payments infrastructure, trends in digital payments, and user engagement. The report offers a detailed analysis of the robust health of digital financial payment systems and highlights the prominent growth observed over the past fiscal year.
Key Highlights
- Retail Payments Growth: Retail payments experienced remarkable growth in FY24, with the volume increasing from 4.7 billion to 6.4 billion, and the value rising from PKR 403.5 trillion to PKR 546.6 trillion, both increasing annually by approximately 35%. The share of digital payments in retail space by volume increased to 84% in FY24 from 76% in FY23.
- User Engagement: Users of internet banking portals increased by 25%, mobile app banking by 16%, Branchless Banking (BB) mobile app by 2%, and e-wallets customers increased phenomenally by 85%.
- Digital Wallets: Mobile banking apps and internet banking portals drove the growth of digital payments, with collective payments increasing by 62% to 1,345.9 million, and value increasing by 74% to PKR 69.8 trillion.
- POS Transactions: The network of POS machines expanded to 125,593 with an annual growth of 8.9%, indicating greater support for card-based transactions at retail outlets and stores. The number of POS-enabled merchants increased from 85,386 to 98,936, marking a 16% growth in a single year. Total transactions in FY24 amounted to 271.4 million of PKR 1.5 trillion, representing a 36% increase in volume and a 41% increase in value compared to the previous fiscal year.
- E-Commerce Payments: E-commerce payments through wallets/accounts gained momentum, with around 87% of digital e-commerce payments initiated through digital wallets/accounts while only 13% were through payment cards. A total of 308.9 million e-commerce payments were made during the fiscal year.
These developments underscore the robust growth and increasing digitalization of the payment systems in Pakistan.
