According to an official statement issued on Tuesday, total payment volumes increased to 2.8 billion transactions in the quarter, reflecting a 10% rise over the previous quarter. The value of retail payments reached Rs166 trillion, marking a 6% quarterly increase, largely driven by growing use of mobile app-based banking.
Digital payment channels accounted for 2.5 billion transactions, representing 90% of total retail payments, compared with 87% in the same quarter last year. The value of transactions conducted through digital channels stood at Rs55 trillion, indicating broader adoption of digital payments across the economy.
Mobile app-based payments continued to dominate the digital landscape. A total of 2.0 billion transactions were conducted through mobile applications offered by banks, branchless banking providers and electronic money institutions. These transactions accounted for 81% of all digital payments and amounted to Rs33.7 trillion in value.
The SBP noted that mobile apps are widely used for person-to-person transfers, bill payments, and account- and wallet-based merchant payments across online platforms and physical retail outlets.
Internet banking also recorded steady growth, with a rising number of users conducting transactions through online channels. The number of payment cards in circulation increased to 61.3 million, of which 90% were debit cards and 4% were credit cards.
The Raast Instant Payment System maintained strong growth momentum during the quarter. Person-to-person transactions through Raast rose to 535 million, showing an increase of 31%, with a total value of Rs11.3 trillion. Person-to-merchant transactions through Raast doubled to 4.3 million, with a value of Rs17.0 billion. Overall, Raast processed 544 million transactions amounting to Rs12.8 trillion during the quarter. Point-of-sale terminals and e-commerce activity also continued to expand, with an average of 1.5 million daily card-based transactions recorded. Across the country, a network of 20,527 ATMs facilitated 267 million transactions worth Rs4.5 trillion.