Islamabad: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has stated in a recent report that a shift to an e-payments funds transfer arrangement could help create nearly 4 million jobs, boost the GDP by USD 36 billion, and shore up the country’s economy by as much as 7% by 2025 — a news source reported earlier today (July 8). The country’s e-commerce and digital economy has witnessed a boost since the coronavirus pandemic forced people to shift their shopping to the internet.
Pakistan has also seen its digital industry rise steadily with sales of local and international e-commerce outlets nearly doubling from PKR 20.7 billion in 2017 to PKR 40.1 billion in 2018, according to data provided by the Ministry of Commerce.
As per Ministry of Commerce Joint Secretary Aisha Humera Moriani, these numbers still do not include post-paid and cash-on-delivery transactions that are estimated to be nearly 60% of all the transactions in Pakistan’s e-commerce sphere.
The government is also looking to introduce a comprehensive international payment system that will integrate with online payment systems like PayPal — with the initiative expected to provide a huge boost to Pakistan’s e-commerce sector.
