SBP reports strong growth in digital payments in FY26 first quarter

KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has released its review of the country’s payment systems for the first quarter of fiscal year 2025-26, highlighting strong growth in digital and retail payments, ARY News reported.

According to the central bank, the volume of retail payments rose to 2.8 billion transactions during the quarter, marking a 10 per cent increase compared to the previous quarter.

The total value of these transactions climbed to Rs166 trillion, up six per cent quarter-on-quarter. SBP said the expansion was primarily driven by the continued rise in mobile app-based banking.

Digital payment channels accounted for 2.5 billion transactions, representing 90 per cent of total retail payments, compared to 87 per cent in the previous quarter. The value of transactions conducted through digital channels increased to Rs55 trillion, reflecting the growing adoption of digital payment methods across the economy.

Mobile app-based payments remained the dominant digital channel, according to SBP. Transactions conducted through apps offered by banks, branchless banking providers and electronic money institutions (EMIs) reached 2.0 billion, accounting for 81 per cent of all digital payments, with a total value of Rs33.7 trillion.

These apps were widely used for person-to-person transfers, bill payments and account- or wallet-based merchant payments across online platforms and physical retail outlets.

Internet banking also recorded steady growth, with a rising number of users opting for digital channels. The number of payment cards in circulation increased to 61.3 million, of which 90 per cent were debit cards and four per cent were credit cards.

State Bank of Pakistan noted sustained growth in the Raast instant payment system. During the quarter, person-to-person (P2P) transactions through Raast increased by 31 per cent to 535 million, valued at Rs11.3 trillion.

Person-to-merchant (P2M) transactions doubled to 4.3 million, with a total value of Rs17 billion. Overall, Raast processed 544 million transactions worth Rs12.8 trillion.

Activity at POS terminals, e-commerce platforms and ATMs also remained strong. A nationwide network of 20,527 ATMs processed 267 million transactions valued at Rs4.5 trillion during the quarter.

SBP said the overall trends reflect Pakistan’s continued progress towards a more efficient, inclusive and digitally driven payments ecosystem.