KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Jameel Ahmad on Tuesday reaffirmed the central bank’s commitment to strengthening the country’s digital payments landscape, emphasing the need for a regulatory framework that drives innovation, competition, and consumer protection.
Speaking at the launch of a new co-badged card introduced by Faysal Bank Limited in partnership with Mastercard and Pakistan’s domestic payment scheme PayPak, the governor highlighted the importance of fostering a secure, interoperable, and self-sustaining payments infrastructure. The event marked another step in Pakistan’s transition toward modern digital financial services.
According to an SBP statement, Ahmad said the central bank remains focused on ensuring a level playing field for all stakeholders, including international payment networks. He noted that co-badging—where a single debit, credit, or prepaid card carries more than one payment brand—offers greater flexibility and wider acceptance for consumers.
The governor added that the newly launched co-badged card will enable consumers to make international and e-commerce payments seamlessly, while domestic transactions will continue to be settled within Pakistan. This, he said, will enhance efficiency, promote digital transactions, and reduce reliance on external networks.
Co-badging has recently gained momentum in Pakistan. Last month, PayPak and UnionPay unveiled a similar card, underscoring PayPak’s strategy to collaborate with global payment schemes. “More banks are expected to adopt these models due to their strong value proposition,” Ahmad said.
Despite PayPak’s sizable footprint—holding over 25% of the 53 million debit cards in circulation—its usage share remains low at just 6%, as per SBP data. Ahmad attributed this gap to limited e-commerce and international acceptance, subdued marketing efforts, and the perception of PayPak as a low-value option.
He stressed that these challenges must be addressed to transform PayPak into a sustainable and competitive domestic payment scheme and to accelerate Pakistan’s broader digital payments agenda.
