The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has published its first Quarterly Payment Systems Review for Fiscal Year 2025-26, revealing significant advancements in the nation’s payment ecosystem during the July-September 2025 period. Retail payment transactions reached an impressive 2.8 billion, reflecting a 10% increase from the previous quarter, while the total value climbed 6% to PKR 166 trillion.
Raast and Mobile Apps Fuel Digital Dominance
A key driver of this growth has been the rapid adoption of digital channels, which handled 2.5 billion transactions—accounting for 90% of all retail payments, up from 87% in the corresponding quarter last year. The value of digital transactions hit PKR 55 trillion. Mobile app-based payments led the charge, with 2.0 billion transactions worth PKR 33.7 trillion, making up 81% of digital payments. These apps, offered by banks, branchless banking providers, and electronic money institutions (EMIs), facilitated person-to-person transfers, bill payments, and merchant transactions both online and at physical outlets.
The Raast Instant Payment System continued its strong trajectory. Person-to-Person (P2P) transactions surged 31% to 535 million, valued at PKR 11.3 trillion, while Person-to-Merchant (P2M) transactions doubled to 4.3 million, amounting to PKR 17 billion. Overall, Raast processed 544 million transactions worth PKR 12.8 trillion.
Internet banking and card usage also expanded, with payment cards in circulation reaching 61.3 million (90% debit, 4% credit). Point-of-Sale (PoS) terminals and e-commerce saw increased activity, recording 1.5 million daily card transactions. Traditional channels remained vital, with 20,527 ATMs handling 267 million transactions (PKR 4.5 trillion) and over-the-counter services at bank branches and branchless banking agents supporting additional volumes.
These trends underscore Pakistan’s progress toward a more inclusive and efficient digital payments landscape, aligning with national goals for financial digitization.