Governor State Bank of Pakistan Reza Baqir has stated that with major digital enablers and fundamental components of a digital economy in place, Pakistan is now well set for a major digital evolution.
“A key goal behind SBP’s framework for digital banks is to promote financial inclusion and innovation in the country and provide an ecosystem where the customer and customer service is prioritized,” he said in his keynote address in a webinar hosted by SBP.
He highlighted the challenges and gaps in the existing banking space and mentioned that SBP has laid a solid foundation for the provision of digital financial services by providing the legal and regulatory environment and core infrastructure.
Baqir also spoke about the steps taken by SBP to promote innovation in financial services, including removing of barriers to entry for non-banks and fintechs, frictionless digital account opening for individuals, in-app biometric verification to facilitate customers’ digital on-boarding, and introducing Pakistan’s Instant Payment System- Raast.
He also emphasized that important initiatives are under discussion with stakeholders on Common Know Your Customer framework—which will enable Financial Institutions to share KYC information with customer consent, to improve customers’ digital journey and open banking.
The event also included a panel discussion moderated by Co-founder of The Rayn Group Tania Aidrus, Chief Fintech Officer of Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) Sopnendu Mohanty, Incoming Chief Executive Officer of ONE Omer Ismail and Managing Member and General Partner at Kleiner Perkins Mamoon Hamid as panelists.
The panelists highlighted the real potential and opportunities of digital banks globally for international players including fintechs, startups, venture capitalists etc. and deliberated on various aspects of the regulatory challenges.
The subject matter experts highlighted that innovation in the financial sector is largely led by the combined efforts of a regulator and other relevant players.
The panel was confident that digital banks will become an essential part of the financial ecosystem and provide people with the access to a wider range of financial services, and advance the broader agenda of financial inclusion.
