KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Wednesday expanded the export finance scheme (EFS) to facilitate exporters and encourage timely foreign inflows.
The central bank said that it had enhanced the scope of EFS with a to further facilitate exporters and encourage timely inflow of export proceeds.
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The EFS has been enhanced for both conventional as well as Sharia based and allowing the exporters to obtain financing against their export proceeds through discounting of export bills/receivables.
Discounting of bills/receivables is essentially a financial transaction where the exporter surrenders its future export proceeds and obtain financing in PKR for the remainder of the time period of exports proceeds realization.
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This initiative will help exporters meet their working capital needs and also incentivize them to bring in their export proceeds in a timely manner that will help to improve foreign exchange inflows in the interbank market.
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Exporter can obtain financing from banks by discounting their export bills/receivables (both post-shipment & pre-shipment) under this scheme, at rates ranging from 2 per cent to 3 per cent depending upon the tenor of discounting. In the first three months, this facility will be available at introductory lower rates of 1 per cent and 2 per cent. Banks will obtain refinance equal to discounted amount for the tenor of discount at tier-based rates ranging from 1 per cent to 2 per cent.
In addition to supportive rates for working capital needs of exporters, SBP has also provided special relaxation under this facility by increasing the export proceed realization period up to 180 days if the exporter avails this discounting facility.
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