The State Bank of Pakistan on Tuesday announced the shortlisted applicants for the first cohort of its Regulatory Sandbox, marking a key step in its Vision 2028 plan to encourage innovation in digital financial services.
The central bank said the selected participants will be allowed to test their proposed solutions in a controlled live environment for up to six months, subject to conditions specified at the time of approval.
According to the SBP, the Regulatory Sandbox was launched with the issuance of guidelines in May 2025, followed by the announcement of the first cohort in August 2025. Applications were invited under three themes: open banking, remote onboarding of merchants and technology enabled solutions for inward remittances.
The initiative attracted strong interest from regulated financial institutions as well as local and international fintech companies, the central bank said.
To ensure transparency and effective oversight of the process, the SBP constituted a high level steering committee to supervise the sandbox.
Under the open banking theme, Neem Exponential Financial Services Private Limited, Digi Khata (SMC Private) Limited and Swich Retail Private Limited have been shortlisted. The Bank of Punjab has been selected under the remote onboarding of merchants category.
For technology enabled inward remittance solutions, Barq Fintech (Pvt) Limited and Taptap Send UK Limited, in partnership with United Bank Limited, have been shortlisted, the SBP said.
The central bank said it expects the Regulatory Sandbox to create an enabling environment for the development and rollout of practical, user centric technological solutions, contributing to greater efficiency and innovation in Pakistan’s financial sector.
