Finance & Digital Economy | July 2026 | 4 min read
⚡ Quick Takeaways
⚡ PM Shehbaz has directed that 100% of overseas remittances be routed through digital channels — up from 92% currently.
⚡ Pakistan recorded 11.9 billion digital transactions between July 2025 and June 2026.
⚡ Active QR-code merchants rose by 300% in one year to reach 2.003 million.
⚡ Mobile banking app users grew from 95 million to 137 million over the same period.
⚡ All 10 million BISP beneficiaries now receive payments through digital wallets; NADRA’s cash payments have fallen from 71% to 1%.
Pakistan’s digital payments push has produced a cluster of headline numbers — 11.9 billion transactions, 137 million mobile banking users, a 300% surge in QR merchants — and PM Shehbaz has responded by raising the bar further. With 92% of remittances already arriving digitally, the directive to reach 100% sets a near-term target with real implications for transparency and the formal financial system.
| 11.9bn
Digital Transactions FY26 July 2025 – June 2026 |
137m
Mobile Banking Users up from 95m |
+300%
QR Merchant Growth to 2.003 million active |
The 100% Remittance Directive
Of the $41.6 billion in remittances Pakistan received in FY26, 92% arrived through formal digital channels. The remaining 8% — roughly $3.3 billion — still flows through informal or non-digital routes. PM Shehbaz has directed that gap be closed entirely, calling on banks and financial institutions to take a more proactive role in steering senders toward digital channels.
The directive carries both a transparency rationale and an economic one. Digitally routed remittances pass through the formal banking system, are recorded in official statistics, and are harder to divert. They also strengthen the State Bank’s foreign exchange data and contribute more reliably to the external sector buffer that Pakistan has been trying to build.
| ℹ️ What the 8% Gap Represents Pakistan’s $41.6 billion in FY26 remittances was a record. Routing 100% of that through digital channels would mean an additional $3.3 billion entering the formal system — a meaningful addition to transparent foreign exchange flows and SBP reserve data. |
The Digital Payments Scorecard
The metrics presented to the PM paint a picture of rapid adoption across multiple fronts. Pakistan logged 11.9 billion digital transactions in FY26. Mobile banking app users climbed from 95 million to 137 million — a 44% increase in a single year. Active merchants accepting QR code payments rose by 300% to reach 2.003 million.
| Metric | Before | Now / Target |
| Digital remittances (% of total) | — | 92% → 100% (target) |
| Digital transactions (FY26) | — | 11.9 billion |
| Active QR merchants | Baseline (Jun 2025) | 2.003 million (+300%) |
| Mobile banking app users | 95 million | 137 million |
| NADRA cash payments | 71% | 1% (99% digitised) |
| BISP digital wallet coverage | Partial | 10 million / 100% |
| ✅ NADRA — From 71% Cash to 1% NADRA’s digital payment conversion is one of the most striking data points in the briefing. A government institution that was processing 71% of its payments in cash a year ago now has just 1% in cash — a near-total reversal that demonstrates what a mandated institutional shift can achieve in a short timeframe. |
BISP — Digital Wallets for 10 Million Beneficiaries
All 10 million beneficiaries of the Benazir Income Support Programme now receive their payments through digital wallets — a complete shift from what was previously a partially cash-based distribution system. The PM welcomed the development, noting that it had made disbursements more transparent, faster and more convenient for beneficiaries.
The BISP digitisation is significant beyond the financial inclusion numbers. Cash-based social protection programmes are vulnerable to leakage — intermediaries, ghost beneficiaries, and delayed disbursements. A fully digital wallet system ties each payment to a verified identity and creates an auditable trail that cash cannot provide.
| ⚠️ Independent Validation — November 2026 An independent third-party validation of Pakistan’s overall cashless economy initiative is currently under way. The final report and recommendations are expected in November 2026 — a timeline that will provide an external benchmark for the progress figures cited in the PM’s briefing. |
What Getting to 100% Will Require
Moving from 92% to 100% digital remittances is a narrower gap in percentage terms than it appears in dollar value. Closing it means reaching remittance senders — predominantly Pakistani workers in Gulf countries and other overseas markets — who currently use hawala networks, cash couriers, or other informal channels. The motivations for using informal channels include lower fees, speed, accessibility in remote areas, and anonymity.
For banks to close that gap, the service proposition needs to match or beat the informal alternatives on at least some of those dimensions. The PM’s call for banks to play a more proactive role is a signal that the government expects the private sector to carry this last mile — through expanded digital onboarding, competitive fee structures, and services accessible to workers without sophisticated financial literacy.
Disclaimer: Statistics cited are based on briefings presented to PM Shehbaz during the digital payments meeting and official government statements. An independent third-party validation of the cashless economy initiative is ongoing, with final findings expected in November 2026.
