 Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb expressed satisfaction with the increase in financing to priority sectors, as agricultural loan disbursements reached Rs2.535 trillion in the fiscal year ending June 2025, reflecting a 14% rise compared to the previous year. He made these comments during a meeting with banks’ CEOs and presidents at the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday.
The meeting, co-chaired by SBP Governor Jameel Ahmad, also included Pakistan Banks Association Chairman Zafar Masood and senior officials from the finance ministry and SBP.Â
Deputy Governor Saleemullah presented a detailed report on the progress in agriculture and SME (small and medium enterprises) financing, as well as digitization efforts. He highlighted that agricultural credit disbursement reached Rs2.535 trillion in FY25, a 14% increase over FY24, with the outstanding credit portfolio rising by 12% to Rs981 billion and the number of borrowers growing by 9% to 2.95 million.
In the SME sector, financing increased by 41%, reaching an outstanding amount of Rs692 billion by the end of FY25, with the number of borrowers rising by 55% to approximately 272,600.
Aurangzeb emphasized the importance of sustainable and inclusive economic growth, with SMEs and agriculture playing a key role. He urged banks to continue focusing on priority sector financing, especially in underserved areas and digital settings, to reach smaller and marginalized segments.
SBP Governor Jameel Ahmad praised the finance minister’s initiatives, including risk coverage schemes for SMEs and agriculture, and urged banks to further expand their exposures in these sectors, supported by government incentives.
Pakistan Banks Association Chairman Zafar Masood thanked the SBP and the finance ministry for their support and committed to accelerating priority sector financing during FY26.
