ISLAMABAD: Saudi Investment Minister Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih said on Friday Riyadh and Islamabad needed to enable private sector investments within existing government-to-government mechanisms like the Saudi-Pakistan Supreme Coordination Council (SPSCC) and Saudi Arabia’s Permanent Coordination Committee for the Development of the Contracting Sector.
Islamabad and Riyadh signed an agreement to establish the SPSCC in 2021 to institutionalize and fast-track decision-making and implementation on political, security, economic and cultural areas of collaboration. The body aims to streamline bilateral cooperation between the two countries, particularly to remove hurdles in investment deals. Separately, Saudi Arabia’s Permanent Coordination Committee for the Development of the Contracting Sector was created in 2022 to work to upgrade the construction sector and tackle project delays and hurdles.
On Thursday, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Al-Falih, who is on a three-day visit to Islamabad, oversaw the signing of over $2 billion in agreements and memorandums of understanding (MoUs) between Saudi and Pakistani businesses.
In comments televised on Pakistan’s state APP news agency on Friday, Al-Falih said Pakistan and Saudi Arabia needed to activate work under existing G2G frameworks such as the Permanent Coordination Committee, which is being led by Mohammad Bin Mazyad Al-Tuwaijri, a Saudi politician and minister-ranked adviser at the Royal Court, with Petroleum Minister Dr. Musadik Malik as his Pakistani counterpart.
“And he [Al-Tuwaijri] has elected to place the Pakistan portfolio within the Royal Court team because he wants to personally have his finger on the pulse of how we are managing [Pakistani investments],” Al-Falih said.
“Within the scope of the G2G, his excellency Al-Tuwaijri and his team have asked MISA [Ministry of Investment for Saudi Arabia] to take the lead on everything about investment, everything about channeling private sector funding, everything about risk mitigation, everything about investment protection, everything about privatization, everything about funding.
“Ultimately what we need to do is enable the private sector.”
The Saudi minister is in Pakistan with a delegation of over 130 businesspeople representing various sectors, including energy, mining, agriculture, tourism, construction, IT and industry. The visit comes as Islamabad seeks closer economic cooperation with friendly countries and regional allies, with the aim to attract foreign investment and shore up its $350 billion economy, beset by a prolonged economic crisis that has drained foreign exchange reserves and weakened the national currency.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia in particular have been working closely in recent months to increase bilateral trade and investment, with Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman reaffirming the Kingdom’s commitment earlier this year to expedite a $5 billion investment package for the South Asian country.
Riyadh calls for enabling private sector investments within existing G2G mechanisms with Pakistan
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Riyadh calls for enabling private sector investments within existing G2G mechanisms with Pakistan
- Pakistan and Saudi businesses signed over $2 billion in agreements and memorandums of understanding this week
- The deals have been signed during a visit to Islamabad by Saudi Investment Minister Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih
Pakistan plans to tokenize $2 billion of domestic debt to tap retail investors — adviser
- Finance ministry exploring digital issuance of sovereign debt instruments, adviser says
- Proposal flagged at ITCN Asia, one of Pakistan’s largest annual technology exhibitions
KARACHI: Pakistan’s finance ministry is planning to tokenize up to $2 billion of domestic government debt in an initial phase, a senior official said on Sunday, as Islamabad explores digital financial instruments to broaden investor participation and modernize public debt markets.
Tokenization involves converting traditional financial assets such as government bonds into digital tokens recorded on a blockchain, allowing them to be bought, sold and held electronically. Proponents say the approach can lower transaction costs, improve transparency and allow smaller retail investors to participate in markets typically dominated by banks and institutional players.
The proposal was disclosed at ITCN Asia, one of Pakistan’s largest annual technology exhibitions, which brings together policymakers, technology firms, investors and startups from around the world. The event is increasingly being used by the government to outline early-stage thinking on digital finance, artificial intelligence and emerging technologies, though many initiatives remain exploratory.
“Ministry of Finance, Government of Pakistan, has also planned to tokenize some portion of its domestic debt worth $2 billion in first phase, primarily tapping retail investors,” the finance ministry said in a statement, quoting adviser to the finance minister Khurram Schehzad as speaking at the ITCN Asia forum.
The adviser did not provide a timeline, regulatory structure or implementation details for the proposed debt tokenization, and it remains unclear how the initiative would be integrated into Pakistan’s existing public debt management framework or overseen by financial regulators.
Pakistan has in recent months stepped up discussions around digital assets and financial innovation, including the creation of regulatory frameworks to better understand cryptocurrencies, blockchain applications and tokenized financial products. Officials say the country remains at an early stage, studying international models such as those adopted in the United Arab Emirates.
