How many bank account deposits are safe in Pakistan?

KARACHI: The Deposit Protection Corporation (DPC) – a subsidiary of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) – has issued its annual report on the safety of the deposits in bank accounts across the country, ARY News reported on Friday.

The SBP’s Deposit Protection Corporation declared 71,540,000 bank accounts ‘safe’ in Pakistan, according to the annual report issued here today.

The bank deposits worth Rs500,000 have a legal cover, said the DPC.

It stated that the deposited money in 98% of bank accounts was completely safe and protected. The total number of accounts in scheduled banks across Pakistan was 70,300,000.

It reports that DPC provides deposit protection to more than 98 per cent of the total 73 million depositors of scheduled banks in Pakistan.

Read Full: Deposit Protection Corporation releases Annual Report for FY2022-23

In a press statement, the DPC said that the objective of releasing its third Annual Report for the year 2022-23 was enhancing the awareness among bank depositors and general public regarding protection of deposits of its member banks.

The Annual Report emphasizes DPC’s unwavering commitment to safeguarding depositors’ funds, strengthening financial stability, and continually enhancing the horizon of deposit protection.

The report provides insights into DPC’s performance during the year and disclosure of its financial performance. It delves into DPC’s future plans and strategic initiatives underscoring the organization’s commitment to strengthen deposit protection.

The coverage and scope of DPC’s deposit protection have been portrayed through statistics and graphical presentations in the report reflecting a clear picture of the Corporation’s safety net.

The report also focuses on public awareness with the tagline “Know the deposit protection”. To ensure ease of understanding, frequently asked questions regarding deposit protection have been illustrated pictorially in this segment.

It is important to note that DPC commenced operations in the year 2018 with the mandate to compensate banks’ depositors in the unlikely event of a bank failure, as stipulated in the Deposit Protection Corporation Act, 2016. Under this Act, all scheduled banks in Pakistan are members of DPC, it concluded.