Digital channels handle 92% of Pakistan’s retail payments in FY26

Pakistan’s shift toward digital payments accelerated in fiscal year 2025-26, with digital channels accounting for 92% of all retail payment transactions, up from 88% a year earlier, according to the State Bank of Pakistan’s annual payment systems report.

The report said 13.2 billion of the 14.3 billion retail transactions carried out through formal banking channels during FY26 were processed digitally, marking a 65% year-on-year increase in digital transaction volumes.

Overall retail payments through formal banking channels rose 58% to 14.3 billion transactions, while their total value increased 10% to PKR 673 trillion.

Mobile-based payments were the biggest driver of the digital shift. Transactions through mobile phone-based solutions rose 79% to more than 11.1 billion, while internet banking transactions increased 15% to around 300 million.

The expansion of digital payment infrastructure also supported the trend. Pakistan’s point-of-sale network grew to 337,791 terminals across 295,367 merchant locations, with daily card payments reaching nearly 1.5 million from about one million a year earlier.

Account-based payments also dominated e-commerce transactions conducted through banking channels, accounting for 96% of the total.

The number of users of branchless banking mobile apps rose to 99.1 million, while bank mobile app users reached 30.4 million, reflecting the growing use of smartphones for everyday financial transactions.

The State Bank also highlighted the launch of PRISM+ in August 2025, which moved Pakistan’s real-time gross settlement system to the ISO 20022 messaging standard as a key development in the country’s payment infrastructure.