KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), as part of its Vision 2028 initiative, has announced the official launch of the Pakistan Real-Time Interbank Settlement Mechanism Plus (PRISM+), which will go live on June 16, 2025. The new system is a major upgrade to the country’s National Digital Payments Infrastructure.
PRISM+ is built on the ISO 20022 financial messaging standard, enabling structured and data-rich financial communication. This will enhance transparency, interoperability, and automation across the payments and settlement ecosystem in Pakistan.
Key features of PRISM+ include:
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Advanced liquidity management tools
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Transaction queuing and prioritization
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Scheduling of future-dated payments
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Customizable dashboards, alerts, and query tools
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Real-time monitoring and approval of transactions via a web-based module
Additionally, PRISM+ introduces a Central Securities Depository (CSD) to facilitate money market operations such as:
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Government securities auctions
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Secondary market transactions
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Collateral management
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Open market operations
To support daily settlements, Transitory Accounts have been established. At the start of each business day, 80% of a participant’s balance from their Current Account held with SBP BSC (Karachi) will be transferred to their Transitory Account. Institutions can manage liquidity by transferring funds between these accounts during business hours and allocate funds for ancillary clearing needs such as Raast, NIFT, and 1Link.
To ensure seamless Straight-Through Processing (STP), participants must integrate their systems with PRISM+ through APIs or file adapters. For a smoother transition, PRISM+ will support both MT and MX (ISO 20022 XML) message formats until September 30, 2025. The MT/MX converter facility will be discontinued from October 1, 2025.
In line with efforts to streamline customer transactions, SBP has directed all financial institutions to adopt Raast Over-the-Counter (OTC) services in place of RTGS OTC for branch-initiated customer transactions. This transition must be completed by September 30, 2025.
The SBP has also urged all participants to review and align their operational frameworks with the new system and retain historical transaction data processed through PRISM+ to ensure accessibility when required.
This major infrastructure revamp is expected to bolster Pakistan’s digital payment landscape and contribute significantly toward a more inclusive, efficient, and secure financial ecosystem.
