Over the past year, the following two milestones have been crossed: Pakistanis conducted a higher value of transactions from their bank’s mobile and web apps than they withdrew in cash from ATMs, and the majority of utility bills in the country are now paid online.
Digital Pakistan is here, and despite most people assuming that Pakistanis like dealing in cash, the fact remains that electronic payments now account for 9.3% of the total value of all transactions that take place in the country, a number that has doubled over the past two years. That estimate is based on Profit’s analysis of data published by the State Bank of Pakistan.
While cash remains king in Pakistan – with nearly 36% of all transactions in the country taking place in physical cash between two parties where neither uses their bank account – digital payments are by far the fastest growing segment.
It appears that global tech powerhouses are beginning to take notice.Â
A week ago some internal documents from Google were leaked, which instigated conjectures of Google Wallet’s entry in Pakistan. Although there has been no formal announcement from Google, the notion that it is set to launch in Pakistan by early 2025 is widespread. In this story, Profit tries to reimagine the digital payments space in Pakistan after the debut of Google Wallet. The content in this publication is expensive to produce. But unlike other journalistic outfits, business publications have to cover the very organizations that directly give them advertisements. Hence, this large source of revenue, which is the lifeblood of other media houses, is severely compromised on account of Profit’s no-compromise policy when it comes to our reporting. No wonder, Profit has lost multiple ad deals, worth tens of millions of rupees, due to stories that held big businesses to account. Hence, for our work to continue unfettered, it must be supported by discerning readers who know the value of quality business journalism, not just for the economy but for the society as a whole.To read the full article, subscribe and support independent business journalism in Pakistan
