Prime Minister Imran Khan introduced the scheme of Pakistan Banao Certificates (aka PBC) to attract overseas Pakistani to invest in the country’s economy. The program is regulated by the government of Pakistan and denoted in US Dollars, in order to make liquidity of funds easier for investors having overseas bank accounts.
According to its official website, PBC “opens avenues of investment for those retail level investors, overseas Pakistanis who are unable to take exposure in the sovereign bonds of the Government of Pakistan due to their higher level of minimum investment requirement.”
To put it simply, the main idea behind the initiation of this scheme, PM Khan claims, is to get overseas Pakistanis involved in the process of strengthening the national economy. PBC is a first sovereign US Dollar denominated retail instrument that is intended to build up interest of Pakistanis living in other countries to contribute in the economic development of Pakistan as they earn handsome returns.
Durations of Maturity and Profit Rates
Pakistan Banao Certificates for overseas Pakistanis are available for 3 and 5 years maturity having annual profit rates of 6.25 and 6.75 percent on coupons that are paid semi-annually.
Perks of Being a PBC Investor
If you are an overseas Pakistani who is willing to undertake this scheme for the sake of the betterment of your country, then you will enjoy the following benefits:
- Profit on semi-annual basis
- Maturity in US Dollar as well as Pakistan Rupee
- Pakistan Rupee maturity has an added incentive of 1%
- Can be converted into cash at any time; however encashment in USD within one year of issuance entails 1 percent penalty
- Encashment application can also be submitted online by accessing the Redemption module of Pakistan Banao Certificate portal
- Periodic Profit and redemption proceeds will be sent to the investors’ accounts designated at the time of investment.
Who can apply for Pakistan Banao Certificates?
According to the official sources, only Pakistanis living abroad can apply for the PBC scheme. They need to present their Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) and National Identity Card for Overseas Pakistanis (aka NICOP).
Pakistanis living abroad having properly maintained bank accounts can invest digitally in the scheme with a help of secure online platforms.
How to Subscribe for Pakistan Banao Certificate?
As this scheme is intended for Pakistanis living abroad, subscription for Pakistan Banao Certificate programme is available online. Registration for the scheme is an easy process. Follow this easy step-by-step guide to subscribe for PBC
- Log on to Pakistan Banao Certificates official website
- Hit ‘Apply for Registration’ button on the website’s homepage
- Sign up by filling out the details including your name, email address, identity document, and gender
- Once you are registered, choose your investment type and provide details of your bank account
- Transfer of funds is required from a foreign bank to the account of State Bank of Pakistan in National Bank of Pakistan, New York branch
- The funds transferred to the SBP account need to be equivalent to the intended investment amount after deduction of the charges, if any.
- After the receiving of funds, electronic certificates are issued to users via email on the registered account. Every certificate holder is given a unique identity number
- Since it is an online portal you can access your user account via respective user ID and password to keep a track of your application
How To Keep Track Of Investments
The official website launched and run by the government defines Pakistan Banao Certificate for overseas Pakistanis as, “PBCs is a scrip-less instrument registered in the Securities General Ledgers Account (SGLA) maintained at State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). PBCs so issued will be residing in an Investor Portfolio Security Account (IPS) of the investor, so as to keep track of investment of each individual investor.”
Minimum Investment Requirement
The minimum investment that is required for Pakistan Banao Certificate scheme is $5000 dollars or higher having no maximum limit. As already discussed, the investors are required to remit the amount they intends to put in this scheme from his account in any country other than Pakistan.
The outcome of Pakistan Banao Certificates Programme
PBCs is an ambitious plan of the current government of Pakistan to tap the potential of citizens living abroad. Our country has the 6th largest diaspora in the world. With the help of this investment programme, Pakistanis living abroad will get twice as much return as any other similar scheme. The phenomenon of encashment of Pakistan Banao Certificates in US dollars ensures that Dollar-Rupee parity will not make any difference in its value.
According to the government of Pakistan, funds accumulated as a result of this scheme will be utilized in building healthcare centres, educational institutions, improvement of infrastructure and strengthening of economy. As per latest reports, the State Bank of Pakistan issued a notice in February to all the commercial banks in Pakistan to promote Pakistan Banao Certificates.
The government of Pakistan has high expectations from PBC scheme since they have developed a very simple procedure for overseas Pakistani to apply for it having high return rates. Only time will tell how advantageous this scheme is going to be in the long run.
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