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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan signed a letter of intent (LoI) on&nbsp;Sunday to develop a digital wallet that will allow overseas workers in the United Arab Emirates to send remittances home at no cost, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported. The Prime Minister&#39;s Youth Programme (PMYP) signed the LoI with Dellsons Associates Private Limited to create the platform, which will integrate with the government&#39;s Digital Youth Hub and target migrant workers in the UAE. PMYP Chairman Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan witnessed the ceremony at the Prime Minister&#39;s Office, joined by representatives from the Ministry of Finance, ONE LINK, and United Bank Limited. The Joint Secretary of PMYP, Dr Muhammad Ali Malik,&nbsp;and the Founder and Chairman of Dellsons Associates, Ibrahim Amin, &nbsp;attended with their teams. The proposed wallet will allow overseas Pakistanis in the UAE to send money through formal banking channels without transaction fees, officials said. The initiative seeks to ease financial access for migrant workers, enhance financial inclusion, and encourage documented remittance systems. Dellsons Associates, which operates in financial technology and maintains partnerships in the UAE, will handle design, development, deployment, and management of the wallet. Implementation will proceed in coordination with ONE LINK, United Bank Limited, and other stakeholders. The project will comply with regulatory requirements from both the Central Bank of the UAE and the State Bank of Pakistan, including anti-money laundering, counter-terrorism financing, know-your-customer protocols, consumer protection, and cybersecurity standards, according to the agreement. The implementing partners will establish technological infrastructure, operational support systems, customer onboarding mechanisms, marketing programs, and UAE-based service centers. Officials said the partnership aligns with the prime minister&#39;s vision for a digital economy and supports PMYP&#39;s framework focused on education, employment, engagement, and environment. The collaboration is expected to boost formal remittance inflows, reduce dependence on informal transfer channels and contribute to Pakistan&#39;s economic stability.

Economy

The proposed wallet will allow overseas Pakistanis in the UAE to send money through formal banking channels without transaction fees.

Pakistan signs letter of intent for zero-cost remittances from workers in UAE

Shizza Jasmin

If you&#39;re a regular online shopper, you&#39;re familiar with the frustration of hearing &quot;card not accepted&quot; just as you&#39;re about to pay. Even worse is being told, &quot;You can transfer online.&quot; Navigating banking apps and entering merchant details can be a clumsy and frustrating experience. After recently returning to Pakistan, I decided to tackle this issue. To get more insight, I interviewed Pakistan&rsquo;s Minister of State for Finance and Railways, Bilal Azhar Kiyani, on my podcast, &quot;Chatroom with Shizza.&quot; Our goal was to explore Pakistan&#39;s digital transformation plans. The vision of a cashless Pakistan A cashless future isn&#39;t just a dream; it&#39;s becoming a reality. Kiyani said the &quot;Cashless Pakistan&quot; initiative is more than just government talk. It is a top priority for the prime minister, who meets biweekly with the Cashless Economy Steering Committee. The stakes are high: increased transparency, improved efficiency, and an alarming Rs18 billion ($63.8 million) lost each year in payment processing. A unified effort: Government, telecom, and banks One of the most promising aspects of this transformation is the cooperation among key players. Major telecom companies like Jazz and Easypaisa, along with the Pakistan Banks Association, are now working together. Kiyani described the effort as a comprehensive movement, merging both government and private sector goals. The strategy is built on three main pillars, each led by a government organization. The State Bank of Pakistan aims to increase the number of merchants accepting digital payments from 500,000 to 2 million. They also want to grow digital banking users from 95 million to 120 million and double annual digital transactions from 7.5 billion to 15 billion by June 2026. Economic transparency and tax reform This transformation isn&#39;t just about technology. For instance, the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) is the largest social safety net in the country. Previously, it relied on cash payments, which led to issues like middlemen and mistakes. Now, 10 million beneficiaries are receiving e-wallets, making digital banking more accessible. &quot;This isn&#39;t just about technology,&quot; Kiyani said, &quot;It&#39;s about education.&quot; The new Pakistan Digital Authority will oversee digital payments and promote financial literacy across the country. Tax reform is also critical. Pakistan&#39;s tax-to-GDP ratio improved from 8.2% to 10.6% last fiscal year. Digital transactions can help with better economic documentation and fairer tax distribution. &quot;Digital payments increase transparency,&quot; Kiyani said. &quot;They reduce wrongdoing and lessen our reliance on human resources.&quot; Expected timeline The government has set an ambitious timeline. By the end of 2026, all payments involving federal, provincial, and state-owned enterprises will be digitized. They plan to subsidize QR-based payment systems for small merchants, encouraging digital payment adoption through lower processing fees. When I asked Kiyani if this effort might be too late, he remained positive. &quot;The pace has been organic,&quot; he said. &quot;But the ecosystem is maturing. The prime minister has set clear targets.&quot; The road ahead After the interview, I felt hopeful. The combination of improved infrastructure, political will, and private-sector cooperation appears stronger this time. Success will depend on effective implementation, education, and convincing everyday vendors that digital payments are not just feasible but preferable. As someone who prefers scanning to fumbling with cash, I&rsquo;ll be watching this digital revolution closely. Until then, I&rsquo;ll continue with manual transfers &mdash; and some grumbling. Catch the full episode of &quot;Chatroom with Shizza&quot; on our YouTube channel.

Business

Taxation

Banking

Pakistan’s digital payment push aims to boost digital transactions by 2026 through government-private cooperation, improving transparency, tax reform, and financial education.

Articles tagged with "cashless pakistan"

Pakistan signs letter of intent for zero-cost remittances from workers in UAE

Cashless Pakistan: A nation's ambitious leap toward transparency