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Category: Money & Banking

Money and banking drive economic activity by facilitating transactions, savings, and investments. Banks manage financial resources, offer credit, and regulate money supply, ensuring stability and growth in Pakistan’s financial sector.

  • Habib Bank posts 100 percent growth in annual profit

    Habib Bank posts 100 percent growth in annual profit

    KARACHI: Habib Bank Limited on Wednesday declared 100 percent growth in net profit for the year ended December 31, 2020.

    The bank recorded after tax profit of Rs31 billion for the year 2020 as compared with Rs15.5 billion in the preceding year.

    The healthy annual profit can be attributed to gain on securities of Rs7 billion in the year 2020 as compared with loss in securities of Rs2.65 billion in the preceding year.

    Banking experts said that high participation of banks in market treasury bills and Pakistan Investment Bonds resulted in significant yields in profits.

    According to the financial results the net mark-up and interest income of the banks increased to Rs130 billion during the year under review as compared with Rs101 billion in the preceding year.

    Total income of the banks increased to Rs160 billion for the year 2020 as compared with Rs125.5 billion in the preceding year.

    Operating expenses of the banks was at Rs94 billion for the year 2020 as compared with Rs92.23 billion in the preceding year.

    The bank declared earnings per share increased to Rs21.06 for the year 2020 as compared with Rs10.45 in the preceding year.

    A final cash dividend for the year ended December 31, 2020 at Rs3 per share i.e. 30 percent. This is in addition to interim dividends already paid at Rs1.25 per share i.e. 12.5 percent.

  • Allied Bank declares 28pc growth in annual profit

    Allied Bank declares 28pc growth in annual profit

    KARACHI: Allied Bank Limited on Wednesday announced 28 percent growth in net profit for the year ended December 31, 2020.

    The bank recorded after tax profit of Rs18.03 billion for the year 2020 as compared with Rs14.11 billion in the preceding year.

    The healthy annual profit can be attributed to gain on securities of Rs3.42 billion in the year 2020 as compared with Rs1.58 billion in the preceding year.

    Banking experts said that high participation of banks in market treasury bills and Pakistan Investment Bonds resulted in significant yields in profits.

    According to the financial results the net mark-up and interest income of the banks increased to Rs48.42 billion during the year under review as compared with Rs42 billion in the preceding year.

    Total income of the banks increased to Rs61 billion for the year 2020 as compared with Rs52.7 billion in the preceding year.

    Operating expenses of the banks was at Rs29.87 billion for the year 2020 as compared with Rs28.55 billion in the preceding year.

    The bank declared earnings per share increased to Rs15.75 for the year 2020 as compared with Rs12.32 in the preceding year.

    A final cash dividend for the year ended December 31, 2020 at Rs6 per share i.e. 60 percent. This is in addition to interim dividends already paid at Rs2 per share i.e. 20 percent.

  • Rupee falls by 27 paisas against dollar

    Rupee falls by 27 paisas against dollar

    KARACHI: The Pak Rupee fell by 27 paisas against the dollar on Tuesday owing to demand for import and corporate payments.

    The rupee ended Rs159.54 to the dollar from previous day’s closing of Rs159.27 in the interbank foreign exchange market.

    Currency dealers said that the local currency was under pressure because of oil import bill as international oil prices were increasing.

    The dealers said that normalcy returned in the global economies following the launch of coronavirus vaccine.

  • Rupee weakens by 45 paisas against dollar on high import payment demand

    Rupee weakens by 45 paisas against dollar on high import payment demand

    The Pakistani Rupee experienced a depreciation of 45 paisas against the US Dollar on Monday, ending the day at Rs159.27 in the interbank foreign exchange market. This decline comes after a period of consecutive gains, attributed to heightened demand for import and corporate payments.

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  • SBP allows housing loan on personal guarantee

    SBP allows housing loan on personal guarantee

    KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday eased condition for availing loan for housing loan by allowing personal guarantee.


    The SBP said that currently applicants face difficulties in obtaining housing finance, especially for low cost housing, as banks are reluctant to take the risk of the house not being completed or documentation completion.


    The completion of housing unit and mortgage creation takes time. In order to address this issue for applicants and banks, the SBP has allowed acceptance of a third party guarantee for this period up to a maximum of one year. 


    With the aim to facilitate the banks in extending low cost housing finance, SBP has allowed them to accept personal guarantee of third party until the housing unit is completed and the mortgage is perfected.


    The guarantee will remain valid for a maximum period of one year. This step will help promote home ownership of potential borrowers wishing to avail housing finance under Government Markup Subsidy Scheme issued by State Bank of Pakistan on October 12, 2020. 


    Third party guarantee will cover the period from the disbursement of loan to the time when construction is completed and risk coverage becomes available by Pakistan Mortgage Refinance Company. Acceptance of third party personal guarantee will provide additional comfort to banks for extending low cost housing finance, an area in which banks have keen interest for its business potential.


    It is expected that with this move, banks will increase their efforts to ensure that the benefits of the markup subsidy scheme reach marginalized segments of the society who currently do not own a house.

  • Workers remittances grow by 24 percent in seven months

    Workers remittances grow by 24 percent in seven months

    KARACHI: The remittances sent by the overseas Pakistani workers posted 24 percent growth during the first seven months of the current fiscal year as the inflows of remittances exceeded over $2 billion for eight consecutive months, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said on Monday.

    The overseas Pakistani workers have sent $16.47 billion during July – January of fiscal year 2020/2021 as compared with $13.28 billion in the corresponding period of the last fiscal year.

    The SBP said that workers’ remittances had exceeded $2 billion for the eighth consecutive months in January 2021.

    The inflows of workers remittances posted growth of 19.50 percent to $2.27 billion in January 2021 as compared with $1.9 billion in the same month of the last year. However, remittances were lower from the December 2020 level of $2.4 billion.

    A large part of workers’ remittances during July-January 2020/2021 was sourced from Saudi Arabia ($4.5 billion), United Arab Emirates ($3.4 billion), United Kingdom ($2.2 billion) and United States ($1.4 billion).

    This sustained increase in workers’ remittances largely reflects growing use of banking channels that is attributed to continuous efforts by the government and SBP to attract inflows through official channels, limited cross border travel amid the second wave of COVID-19 and flexible exchange rate regime.

  • Rupee appreciation journey continues for 6 consecutive trading days

    Rupee appreciation journey continues for 6 consecutive trading days

    KARACHI: The Pak Rupee appreciated for six consecutive trading days against the dollar on Friday owing to improved inflows of export receipts and workers’ remittances.

    The rupee gained 25 paisas to end at Rs158.82 to the dollar from previous day’s closing of Rs159.07 in the interbank foreign exchange market.

    The appreciation in the rupee value has been continued for the last six consecutive days. The rupee gained around Rs1.36 against the dollar after closing at Rs160.18 on February 03, 2021.

    Currency experts said that improved inflows of export receipts and workers’ remittances helped the rupee to make gain against the foreign currency.

    Pakistan’s exports have crossed over $2 billion for the fourth consecutive months in January 2021 for the first time in last eight years, a official statement said.

  • Rupee strengthens for five consecutive trading days

    Rupee strengthens for five consecutive trading days

    KARACHI: The Pak Rupee strengthened against the dollar for five consecutive trading days on Thursday owing to improved inflows of export receipts and workers’ remittances.

    The rupee made gain of 24 paisas to close at Rs159.07 to the dollar on Thursday from previous day’s closing of Rs159.31 in the interbank foreign exchange market.

    The rupee was at Rs160.18 to the dollar on February 03, 2021. However, since last five trading days the rupee gained value of Rs1.11 against the dollar.

    Currency experts said that improved inflows of export receipts and workers’ remittances helped the rupee to make gain against the foreign currency.

  • ATM transaction charges levied only on obtaining printed receipts: 1Link

    ATM transaction charges levied only on obtaining printed receipts: 1Link

    KARACHI: 1Link Pvt Limited on Wednesday said that charges imposed on ATM transactions only on physical receipts. However, electronic information of transactions is remained free of cost.

    1LINK is Pakistan’s first fully licensed PSO/PSP, largest payment and switch system, committed to administer and evolve a strong e-payment network in the country.

    The 1Link in response to various queries being initiated regarding ATM transactions receipts, said that it was an optional service where banks customers were getting a choice to opt for a physical receipt charged at Rs2.50, or to get a free of cost intimation through SMS.

    “This initiative is part of a ‘Go-Green’ exercise to reduce litter and lower the cost of printed receipts, which are usually discarded immediately,” it said in a statement.

    In addition, sensitive customer information is left for others to peruse, it added.

    “The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has not mandated this and has entirely left the customer to choose a charged receipt or get free electronic confirmation,” it said.

    The 1Link said the guidelines governing this are:

    1. Customer must be informed about charged receipt at the time of transaction.

    2. Bank has registered mobile number of the customer.

    3. The customer has free SMS facility.

    4. Assure that an SMS is pushed to the customer’s registered mobile number with details such as transaction amount and remaining balance.

    The company said that charged receipts on balance inquiry and ATM receipts have been ongoing since quite a while, and customers have full liberty to decline a receipt without incurring any extra cost.

  • State Bank modernizes forex rules to facilitate startups, fintechs

    State Bank modernizes forex rules to facilitate startups, fintechs

    KARACHI: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has modernized foreign exchange regulations to facilitate startups, Fintechs and exports, a statement said on Wednesday.

    The central bank notified revisions in chapter 20 of the Foreign Exchange Manual to facilitate Start-ups, Fintechs and Exports.

    The new policy for equity investment abroad will attract foreign direct investment through the establishment of holding companies by Pakistani fintechs and startups; support exports by facilitating exporters to establish subsidiaries or branch offices outside Pakistan; and, allow resident Pakistanis to acquire sweat equity, amongst other changes to the Foreign Exchange (FX) regulations.

    Further changes in the foreign exchange regulations will facilitate portfolio investment in the country including mutual funds, Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) and Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) Funds through Pak rupee based Roshan Digital Account (RDA) and Special Convertible Rupee Account (SCRA).

    The SBP, after approval of the federal government, has introduced three new categories of investment abroad under its revised policy governing equity investment abroad and banks have been authorized to allow remittances under newly introduced categories.

    i. Establishment of Holding Company abroad by residents for raising capital from abroad: Pakistan’s investment regime is quite liberal that allows full freedom to repatriate profit, dividend and capital; however, some international investors prefer to invest indirectly through holding company established abroad specially in the Fintech and Startup firms. SBP’s revised policy will enable the Pakistani Fintech and startup companies to channelize foreign direct investment in the country by establishing a holding company abroad against remittance of up to USD 10,000 and subsequent swapping of shares to mirror the shareholding of local company in the holding company.

    ii. Establishment of subsidiary/branch office abroad by export oriented companies/ firms for promoting exports: The policy will enable the export oriented companies to establish subsidiary/ branch office abroad against remittance of 10% of their average annual export earnings of last three calendar years, or USD 100,000 whichever is higher. This will facilitate exploring new and non-traditional markets and capturing more export orders, as international buyers prefer dealing with subsidiaries/ representative offices of foreign companies present in their country. Accordingly, the proposed policy would help in growth of export-oriented companies and boost the exports of the country.

    iii. Investment abroad by Resident Individuals: The policy will allow the resident Individuals of Pakistan to acquire equity stake in international firms through share option plans or investment in listed securities subject to observance of annual ceiling of foreign exchange defined in the policy. In case of sweat equity a person can acquire upto twenty percent shareholding in a foreign company. These policy provisions will provide opportunities to individuals to earn foreign exchange for the country in the form of repatriation of dividend/ capital gains to Pakistan.

    Investment in Mutual/Private Funds in Pakistan by Non-Residents:

    With an objective to attract investment in the country, SBP has allowed the trading of units of funds quoted at Stock Exchange, including Exchange Traded Funds (ETF), Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) Funds and close-end mutual funds, through Special Convertible Rupee Accounts (SCRA) and PKR version of Roshan Digital Account (NRP Rupee Value Account (NRVA)). These account holders have also been allowed to invest in units of Mutual Funds registered as Open End Schemes (OES) under the management of Asset Management Companies (AMCs) licensed by SECP to provide asset management services.

    Further, SBP has also allowed the private funds established and operated by Private Fund Management Companies licensed by SECP to provide private equity and venture capital fund management services, to issue units of their funds to non-resident investors.

    It is expected that these changes will help the mutual fund and private equity fund industry to grow by attracting foreign investment in the country. It will also facilitate overseas Pakistanis with Pak Rupee based Roshan Digital Account (RDA) and the non-residents in general to invest in funds in Pakistan.