Governor Jameel Ahmed of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) briefed the Senate’s Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue on Thursday that the central bank is planning to develop its own digital currency, known as the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).
The meeting was conducted at Parliament House under the chairmanship of Senator Saleem Mandviwalla, and the committee was told by the SBP governor that various central banks are working on pilot projects to establish digital money, and the SBP is attempting to learn from their experiences.
According to the governor, the SBP is now assessing the activities of other central banks. He also recommended patience and stated that the CBDC would be launched with caution by the bank.
Committee chairman Saleem Mandviwalla reminded the central bank governor that the SBP was once opposed to digital banking in the country, but is now giving licenses to expedite its deployment.
Mandviwalla claimed that the regulator is likewise in denial about cryptocurrencies and bemoaned how the rest of the world was progressing while Pakistan remained stuck in reverse.
Meanwhile, the governor of the SBP informed the committee that the Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) Bank will be permanently terminated due to significant losses since its creation. Over Rs. 5 billion has already been repaid to SME account holders, and the remaining Rs. 2.5 billion will be returned as well.
