KARACHI, March 16, 2022 – The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has issued the exchange rates for Wednesday, March 16, 2022. These rates are based on the weighted average rates of commercial banks and are provided for informational purposes only, according to the SBP.
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SBP withdraws Raast payment transaction limits
KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Tuesday withdrew transactional limits of payments made through Raast System i.e. Raast Person-to-Person (P2P) Payment System.
The SBP issued Circular No. 02 dated March 15, 2022 and stated that to further facilitate users of Raast services it has been decided that with effect from April 1, 2022, there will be no transactional limits on Raast system by SBP.
Banks/MFBs/EMIs may however set, in their system Raast transaction limits for their customers based on their risk profile in compliance with the relevant Anti-Money Laundering (AML)/Counter Financing of Terrorism (CFT) requirements.
Further, through previous Circular No. 01 dated February 03, 2022, in terms of para 3 (f) of the circular, customer transaction limits for Raast payments shall not be less than Rs.200,000/- per transaction or the transaction limits applicable as per the account type and prescribed by SBP from time to time.
The aggregate customer limit assigned to Raast payments shall not be less than the Interbank Fund Transfer (IBFT) limit, the SBP said.
The aggregate limit shall be communicated to the customers and available transaction limit shall be shown in their mobile apps/internet banking portals.
Banks/MFBs/EMIs shall ensure that above mentioned technical as well as operational arrangements and readiness are in place not later than March 21, 2022.
Banks/MFBs/EMIs shall ensure strict compliance with PSD Circular No. 01 of 2021 by providing their customers with the option to increase or decrease the transaction limits by using their mobile apps/internet banking portals, no later than April 10, 2022, the SBP said.
It is reiterated that Banks/MFBs/EMIs shall put in place robust internal controls and strong risk mitigants to prevent fraudulent activities, misuse/abuse of the transaction limits and risks related to the safety and security of Raast system at their end.
The central bank has implemented Pakistan’s Instant Payment System “Raast” to offer instant, reliable and free person-to-person payment services to the people of Pakistan with the objective of promoting digital financial services and financial inclusion.
READ MORE: SBP launches free P2P money transfer under Raast
The first phase of the system, “Raast – Bulk Payments”, was launched on January 11, 2021 and is live since then.
The second phase of Raast, which enables instant Person-to-Person (P2P) fund transfers and settlement is also launched.
READ MORE: PM Imran launches 2nd phase of Raast payment system
Customers would be able to send and receive funds using either their International Bank Account Number (IBAN) or their Raast ID. Initially customers would be able to use their registered mobile numbers as their Raast ID and link it to any of their bank account for conveniently receiving funds.
READ MORE: CDC successfully processes dividends through RAAST payment gateway
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SBP issues KIBOR rates on March 15, 2022
KARACHI: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Tuesday issued the Karachi Interbank Offered Rates (KIBOR) as of March 15, 2022.
Following are the latest KIBOR rates:
Tenor BID OFFER 1 – Week 9.81 10.31 2 – Week 9.88 10.38 1 – Month 10.11 10.61 3 – Month 11.09 11.34 6 – Month 11.67 11.92 9 – Month 11.76 12.26 1 – Year 11.83 12.33 -
Customers’ exchange rates on March 15, 2022
KARACHI, March 15, 2022 – The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has released the exchange rates for Tuesday, March 15, 2022. These rates are based on the weighted average rates of commercial banks and are provided for informational purposes only, according to the SBP.
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SBP issues KIBOR rates on March 14, 2022
KARACHI: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday issued the Karachi Interbank Offered Rates (KIBOR) as of March 14, 2022.
Following are the latest KIBOR rates:
Tenor BID OFFER 1 – Week 9.81 10.31 2 – Week 9.89 10.39 1 – Month 10.09 10.59 3 – Month 11.07 11.32 6 – Month 11.68 11.93 9 – Month 11.77 12.27 1 – Year 11.83 12.33 -
Customers’ exchange rates on March 14, 2022
KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday issued customers’ exchange rates for March 14, 2022. The exchange rate is on the basis of weighted average rates of commercial banks.
The SBP said the data is compiled and disseminated for information only. These exchange rates are estimates that quoted by various commercial banks to their clients.
The banks provide their indicative exchange rates for commercial transactions with customers.
CURRENCY BUYING SELLING AED 48.6943 48.8054 AUD 129.4997 129.7923 CAD 139.8657 140.1766 CHF 191.0347 191.4790 CNY 28.1411 28.2017 EUR 195.1174 195.5646 GBP 232.6847 233.2162 JPY 1.5177 1.5211 SAR 47.6479 47.7546 USD 178.7305 179.1533 -
SBP announces task force to boost agriculture finance
KARACHI: The first meeting of the Task Force on Electronic Warehouse Receipt Financing (EWRF) was held under the chairmanship of Governor, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Dr. Reza Baqir on Friday in Lahore.
The Chief Secretary, Government of Punjab, Kamran Ali Afzal also attended the meeting on special invitation.
The EWRF Task Force is a high-level forum headed by the Governor SBP and comprises of senior officials from Federal & Provincial Governments, SBP, CEOs of Banks and Chairmen/MDs of SECP, PMEX, PBA, PASSCO and a Collateral Management Company. The goal of the EWRF is to promote agriculture finance and food security.
READ MORE: SBP organizes discussion on ‘promise of digital banks’
The Task Force is established as part of a recent initiative by SBP to synergize the efforts of all stakeholders, for the promotion of EWRF in Pakistan.
During the meeting, Governor SBP announced measures to attract investment in the construction of new warehouses/silos through SBP’s Financing Facility for Storage of Agricultural produce (FFSAP) in order to boost EWRF.
These measures included; i) increase in tenor of FFSAP loans from current 7 years to 10 years to make it more attractive for investors by creating a long payback period; ii) increase in the grace period from 1 year to up to 2 years to provide additional flexibility to investors of such projects and adjust repayment due to time lag involved in construction of new storage facilities; and iii) revision in repayment terms from monthly to quarterly/six monthly to align the facility with the seasonality in agriculture sector.
READ MORE: Pakistan’s e-banking registers sharp increase in 1QFY22
Financing under FFSAP is available at 6% per annum to end users on long term basis for construction, expansion and balancing, modernization & replacement (BMR) of Steel/Metal/Concrete Silos, Warehouses & Cold Storage facilities for storing agricultural produce.
The Task Force deliberated on the future course of action to enhance the uptake of EWRF in the country. The discussions focused mainly on ways to enhance and modernize the storage capacity in the country, develop a transparent price discovery mechanism for farmers, enhance applicability of EWRF to other agricultural commodities including wheat, develop specialized insurance products, and conduct training and capacity building of banks & farming community.
READ MORE: SBP imposes Rs1.45 billion penalty on 18 banks in 2021
Governor Dr. Baqir termed EWRF endeavors to be an essential component of formal credit to farmers who do not have acceptable collateral to offer to banks. He emphasized how strengthening of EWR regime in Pakistan will play a key role to bridge the gap between supply and demand of agriculture credit, minimize post-harvest losses, ensure better price discovery for farmers, and ultimately increase farmers’ profitability and counter food insecurity challenges.
Dr. Baqir appreciated the collaborative efforts of all stakeholders who transformed the idea of EWRF into a workable solution but insisted on maintaining a steady momentum to achieve its desired objectives. He acknowledged the Chief Secretary, Govt. of Punjab for his commitment to provide requisite government support to the Task Force.
READ MORE: SBP imposes penalty of Rs58 million on five banks
Sharing his views, the Chief Secretary Punjab, Mr. Kamran Ali Afzal, appreciated Governor SBP for his timely action in rolling out the economic stimulus package which helped the country in early recovery from COVID pandemic shock. He said that EWRF is a scheme for emancipation of farmers from the clutches of middle men and offered Govt. of Punjab’s complete support in implementation of the action plan adopted by the Task Force.
Previously, SBP had rolled-out the action plan for EWRF at the launch event and roadshow held in Chunian, District Kasur on February 22, 2022 where 25 banks signed their Service Usage Agreements with Collateral Management Company to commence EWRF operations.
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SBP issues KIBOR rates on March 11, 2022
KARACHI: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Friday issued the Karachi Interbank Offered Rates (KIBOR) as of March 11, 2022.
Following are the latest KIBOR rates:
Tenor BID OFFER 1 – Week 9.79 10.29 2 – Week 9.86 10.36 1 – Month 10.07 10.57 3 – Month 11.04 11.29 6 – Month 11.69 11.94 9 – Month 11.77 12.27 1 – Year 11.82 12.32 -
Customers’ exchange rates on March 11, 2022
Karachi, March 11, 2022: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has published the official exchange rates for March 11, 2022, providing a snapshot of the currency values against the Pakistani Rupee.
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SBP’s reserves slip by $250 million on foreign payments
KARACHI: The official foreign exchange reserves of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) declined by $250 million owing to external debt payments.
The official reserves of the central bank decreased to $16.212 billion by week ended March 04, 2022. The central bank’s official reserves were $16.462 billion a week ago on February 25, 2022, the SBP said on Thursday.
The SBP said the reserves were declined due to external debt and other payments.
The total liquid foreign exchange reserves of the country fell by $206 million to $22.669 billion by week ended March 04, 2022 as against $22.875 billion as on February 25, 2022.
The foreign exchange reserves held by commercial banks, however, increased by $44 million to $6.457 billion by week ended March 04, 2022 as compared with $6.413 billion a week ago.
READ MORE: Pakistan’s forex reserves decline to $22.875 billion