KARACHI: Inflows of Roshan Digital Account (RDA) are growing, reaching $4.2 billion at the end of April 2022. Despite political uncertainty in the country, the overseas Pakistanis continue to invest in RDA due to attractive profit rate.
According to statistics released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday, RDA fetched inflows amounted to $247 million in April 2022.With the arrival of fresh inflows, overall investment in the RDA rose to $4.167 billion at the end of April compared to $ 3.920 billion in March 2022.
The major investment was made in Naya Pakistan Certificates. Out of total inflows, some $2.753 billion were invested in Naya Pakistan Certificates, which were especially offered by the government to the expatriates at a very attractive rate of return from 5-7 percent.
Economists said that growth in RDA inflows is a good sign as the country needs huge foreign inflows to build the depleting SBP’s foreign exchange reserves, which declined to $ 10.499 billon end of the last week.
Roshan Digital Account: inflows cross $3.9bn, NPCs attract over two-thirds of total
The government is also making efforts to review the loan programme with the IMF for release of the next tranche of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF). In addition, the government is also approaching friendly countries like Saudi Arabia and China to get some deposits to strengthen the country’s foreign exchange reserves.
Overseas Pakistanis from 175 countries have so far opened some 403,750 accounts under RDA. Through RDA for the first time in Pakistan’s history, NRPs are being provided an opportunity to remotely open an account in Pakistan through an entirely digital and online process without any need to visit a bank branch.
The RDA is a major initiative of State Bank, in collaboration with commercial banks operating in Pakistan to provide innovative banking solutions to the Non-Resident Pakistanis (NRPs), including Non-Resident Pakistan Origin Card (POC) holders, seeking to undertake banking, payment and investment activities in Pakistan.
The initiative was launched in September 2020 by the SBP and offered up to 7 percent profit on US dollar investment.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022