KARACHI: The Arab Monetary Fund (AMF) and the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) are engaged in technical level talks to integrate their payment systems and facilitate cross-border remittances between the Arab region and Pakistan, the deputy governor of the SBP said.
The chairman of AMF and the governor of Pakistan’s central bank signed an agreement last year to establish a framework of cooperation between Buna, a cross-border payment system operated by Arab Regional Payments Clearing and Settlement Organization (ARPCSO) and owned by AMF, and Raast, a Pakistani instant payment system for real-time settlement of small-value retail payments, including inter-bank peer-to-peer and person-to-merchant transactions.
Technical talks are now on to integrate the two systems and facilitate millions of Pakistanis living in the Gulf region by enabling them to send remittances in real time at a lower cost. The integration will also benefit businesses through instant, safe and cost-effective cross border payments and aims to strengthen economic, financial, and investment ties between Arab countries and Pakistan.
“After signing the MoU, the negotiations are on with the technical teams, and at the technical level, the modalities and the developments needed at the end of Buna and at the end of Raast, they are being worked out,” Saleem Ullah, the deputy governor of the State Bank of Pakistan, told Arab News on Wednesday.
After the completion of the technical level talks, details would be shared with the vendor for execution, he added.
“Fortunately, the vendor is same for Buna and Raast. Once we are able to finalize the requirements, then those would be shared with the vendor, and then the vendor would be able to give us the timeline within which that development would be possible,” he added.
He said the execution of the project would take at least a year “but it would depend on the vendor estimates with respect to the developments that are to be developed for the purpose of developing this interface.”
Financial experts believe the initiative would benefit about five million Pakistanis living in the Gulf region and help Pakistan boost its remittance inflows through legal channels.
“The benefit for 5 million plus Pakistanis living in the Gulf would be lesser hassle in remitting money to Pakistan because the dependency on other international similar platforms see longer transaction turnaround time as these platforms either exist in the US or other markets,” Danish Kazi, financial and political analyst based in UAE, told Arab News.
Kazi said both affordability and access for common Pakistanis to encourage remitting through legal channels would increase with the new initiative.
“This would also help business transactions which means more export opportunities for Pakistani goods and services in the region,” he added.
The aim was to regulate remittances through SBP instead of them moving via non documented sectors.
“Further, these remittances through Buna to Pakistan may also assist SBP to raise funds from Gulf markets using these as collateral or toward payments of such financing via commercial or government banks,” Kazi said.
Arab Monetary Fund, Pakistan central bank in talks to integrate cross-border remittance platforms
https://arab.news/cpjtk
Arab Monetary Fund, Pakistan central bank in talks to integrate cross-border remittance platforms
- Buna is a cross-border payment system supported by Arab central banks and fully owned by Arab Monetary Fund
- AMF and Pakistan’s central bank signed agreement last year to integrate Buna and Pakistani platform Raast
Pakistani court sentences TLP leader for 35 years over incitement against ex-chief justice
- The case stems from a 2024 speech targeting former Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa over a blasphemy ruling
- Conviction follows the government’s move to proscribe Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan after clashes with police this year
ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani court this week sentenced a leader of the religio-political party Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) to 35 years’ imprisonment on multiple charges for inciting hate against former Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa.
Peer Zaheer ul Hasan Bukhari made the remarks in a 2024 speech at the Lahore Press Club against the former chief justice for issuing a judgment in a case involving a man named Mubarak Sani under the blasphemy laws, a member of a minority religious community whose death sentence was overturned.
Authorities said Bukhari’s comments amounted to incitement to violence, after which police registered a case against him under various terrorism-related provisions as well as charges of inciting hatred.
The cleric was handed multiple jail terms on a range of charges, with the longest being 10 years of rigorous imprisonment, amounting to a total of 35 years.
“All the sections of imprisonment awarded to the convict shall run concurrently,” Anti-Terrorism Court Judge Arshad Javed said in a letter to the Kot Lakhpat Central Jail superintendent.
A collective fine of Rs600,000 ($,150) was also imposed on the TLP party leader under the provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Act.
The move follows Pakistan’s decision in October to ban the TLP and designate it a proscribed organization under the Anti-Terrorism Act after violent clashes between its supporters and law enforcement in Punjab.
The unrest erupted as demonstrators attempted to travel from Lahore to Islamabad, saying they wanted to stage a pro-Palestine rally outside the US Embassy.
However, officials said TLP supporters were armed with bricks and batons, arguing their intention was to stir violence similar to earlier marches toward the federal capital.
The clashes between TLP supporters and police resulted in the deaths of five people, including two policemen, and injured more than 100 officers and dozens of protesters.
Led by Saad Hussain Rizvi, the TLP is known for its confrontational street politics and mass mobilizations.
Since its emergence in 2017, the party has repeatedly organized sit-ins and marches toward Islamabad, often triggering violent confrontations and prolonged disruptions on major routes to the capital.
