KARACHI: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Friday advised banks, microfinance banks and development financial institutions (DFIs) to register their security interest under secured transaction laws.
The SBP in a circular said that with a view to provide for registration of charge on security/collateral offered by un-incorporated entities including sole proprietorships and partnerships and thereby enhancing their access to finance, The Financial Institutions (Secured Transactions) Act, 2016 (STA) was promulgated on July 1, 2016.
The government has authorized the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) to operate Secured Transactions Registry (STR) to record statements in relation to security interests created by entities under STA. SECP is going to launch the Secured Transactions Registry (STR) under the STA on April 27, 2020 for registration of security interests on movable assets of entities, other than companies.
In view of the above, all the banks, microfinance banks and DFIs are advised to register their security interests against movable assets of entities for future as well as prior security interests (i.e. security interests created before the operationalization of the STR as provided under section 73 of the STA) in the STR.
The security interest has been defined as: “a right, title, encumbrance or interest of any kind upon movable property created or provided for by a security agreement in relation to a transaction that in substance secures the payment or performance of a customer’s obligation under a finance without regard to the form of the transaction or the terminology used by the parties or the identity of the person who title to the movable property, and includes any charge, mortgage, hypothecation, fixed charge, floating charge, assignment, lien, pledge, assignment of receivable by way of security and transactions under which a secured creditor retains title such as a finance lease, hire purchase agreement, sale and lease back arrangement, conditional sale agreement and retention of title arrangement, having similar effect.”
