Pakistan's Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA), the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), and various banks are coordinating efforts to expand credit, urging provinces to take the lead in financing small and medium-sized enterprises.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has introduced a framework allowing teenagers to securely save and transact, aiming to foster responsible financial habits among the youth.

KARACHI: The country’s current account has recorded a surplus of $479 million in February, leading to a substantial decrease in the current account deficit for the ongoing fiscal year. According to details shared by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday, the country’s current account has posted a surplus in the first two months of the calendar year 2026, after recording a deficit of $244m in December 2025. In the first two quarters of FY26, the current account ...

KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has launched ‘Cyber Shield’, a comprehensive cyber resilience strategy, to counter growing global and domestic cyber threats to the financial ecosystem, aligning with international best practices. As part of its Vision 2028 agenda, the SBP launched Cyber Shield, a major initiative aimed at strengthening the safety and robustness of the country’s banking and financial system. The banks have been facing increasing incidents of cyber crimes, while the international organisations believe that every second Pakistani is facing the cybersecurity problem. With the rapid digitisation and very high growth of online payments, cyber threats have also increased. Bankers said the situation is not alarming, but there is a need to implement quick remedies to control it, which would help strengthen the banking system in Pakistan. Outlines key priorities to counter growing threats by 2030 “The milestones laid down in the strategy will be implemented in a phased manner by 2030. All regulated entities are required to align their internal cybersecurity programs with the strategy to ensure compliance,” said the SBP. The central bank said the strategy has been designed to better protect banks and financial institutions from cyber threats, thus ensuring that people and businesses can continue to access financial services safely. The SBP said it set out a clear roadmap to help financial institutions strengthen their systems and controls, prevent cyber incidents, respond quickly when cyber threats materialise, and recover effectively from them. “As the banking ecosystem faces increasingly sophisticated cyber threats, the strategy aims to enhance cyber defences of the regulated entities through a holistic, forward-looking and collaborative approach,” said the SBP. Bankers said cybersecurity experts are not available to meet the growing demand in financial institutions, as many young Pakistani experts prefer jobs abroad with higher pay. There is no attractive policy to retain cybersecurity experts in the country. The SBP said the Cyber Shield focuses on five key priorities: strengthening the ability of banks to withstand cyber incidents, improving governance and accountability for cybersecurity, encouraging cooperation and information-sharing across the financial sector, building skilled cyber talent, and continuously updating security practices to keep pace with new risks. “The SBP will closely monitor both global and domestic cyber developments and will update the strategy as needed to address emerging threats,” said the SBP. By strengthening cyber resilience across the banking sector, SBP aims to safeguard customers, support digital innovation in a secure environment and ensure financial stability, it added. About 90 per cent of bankers believe that cybercrime is the biggest challenge confronting the banking industry in the country, according to a previous survey conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Pakistan. Seventy per cent list fraud as their major concern, and 60 per cent believe terrorism financing is the biggest threat, the survey showed. “Banks in Pakistan operate within an evolving financial crime compliance ecosystem,” said the survey report. Published in Dawn, February 17th, 2026

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has simplified export rules for IT freelancers, allowing banks one day to process receipts and removing the requirement for Form R for every transaction.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has purchased $12.4 billion to bolster its foreign exchange reserves, including $1.024 billion in December 2025 alone, contributing to a slight appreciation of the rupee to 279.15 against the dollar.

On March 9, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) decided to keep the policy interest rate unchanged at 10.5pc, a decision that arrived as the macroeconomic outlook became “quite uncertain following the outbreak of the war in the Middle East”. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz following the escalation compounded war-related worries for oil-import-dependent Pakistan. War-risk premiums have reportedly risen manifold since the conflict began, while obtaining insurance coverage for import cargoes ha...

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has reported an increase in its foreign exchange reserves by $6 million, bringing the total to $16.38 billion, while total forex stands at $21.79 billion.

LAHORE: The Ministry of Interior, in collaboration with finance ministry, on Tuesday, announced launching a massive crackdown on money-laundering and hawala/hundi networks across the country. A joint working group comprising the officials of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) will be formed to regularly review the progress made in this regard. A meeting held under the joint chairmanship of Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Federal Minister f...

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday maintained its key policy rate at 10.5 per cent. Pakistan has begun to feel the economic fallout of the escalating conflict between the US-Israel against Iran, which has led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and triggered a sharp rise in global fuel prices. In international markets, Brent crude is on track for a record one-day gain, as mounting geopolitical tensions place severe pressure on global energy supplies. Mean...