ISLAMABAD – The Senate Standing Committee on Finance has recommended an action against commercial banks that are not promoting local PayPal debit cards, despite clear directives from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
During a meeting, committee members expressed concerns that banks were failing to encourage the use of local PayPal debit cards, and that this had led to the widespread practice of paying school fees at expensive educational institutions via Visa and MasterCard.
The committee called for efforts to increase the adoption of local PayPal debit cards, which have no transaction fees. This is seen as a step toward reducing reliance on foreign payment systems.
The officials of the central bank revealed that Pakistan currently has 53 million debit cards and more than 2 million credit cards in circulation, but the market share of PayPal cards is only 26%.
Members were also alarmed by the fact that Pakistan annually pays up to $200 million in transaction fees for international Visa and MasterCard payments, prompting concerns over the high cost of foreign services.
In light of this, the committee urged the central bank to take action against those banks that fail to promote local PayPal cards effectively.
Additionally, during the meeting, the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Governance and Corruption Diagnostic Report was discussed. Senators raised serious concerns over the report’s findings, which revealed $5.3 trillion in corruption, affecting Pakistan’s international reputation.
Senator Dilawar Khan highlighted the negative impact of the findings, while Senator Farooq Naik expressed concerns that the report could send a damaging message to foreign investors.
Finance Ministry officials responded, stating that the government had already committed to addressing the 15-point framework outlined in the report.
