More than 15 years ago, Pakistan’s financial services landscape saw a seismic shift with the introduction of branchless banking regulations. Around that time, the country had just over 16 million personal accounts with scheduled banks, and the overwhelming majority relied on informal networks to move money around. However, with growing mobile phone penetration, the traditional brick-and-mortar bra
The World Bank launched an important report titled ‘Realising the Potential of Pakistan’s Secondary Cities’ that discusses the challenges faced by urban centres in the country. On a similar theme, the Asian Development Bank unveiled ‘Pakistan National Urban Assessment’. Both documents focus on a multitude of issues, including local finances. The reports found that Pakistan is urbanising at a fa
To meet a deadline set by the International Monetary Fund, the Ministry of Finance has directed all state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to adopt standard regulations and reporting manuals for their operational protocols, business plans, board appointments and financial audits to minimise fiscal risks for the state. The ministry’s Central Monitoring Unit (CMU) issued directives on Oct 31, the IMF-man
Federal Privatisation Minister Abdul Aleem Khan has hinted at selling Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to a private buyer with zero liabilities. While addressing a press conference on Sunday, the minister also welcomed provincial governments to take over the airline’s control and run it in a professional manner. He said that, as per the existing framework, around Rs600 billion of PIA’s
The stock market on Wednesday witnessed a rollercoaster session as the benchmark KSE 100 index witnessed wild fluctuations. However, bears outnumbered bulls, ending the seven-session winning streak and pushing the index into negative territory. Initially, the index surged 1,008.54 points, hitting an intraday high of 91,872.63, but bears entered the market, pulling the index down by 860.78 poi