Last night on 12th March 2021, the State Bank of Pakistan went on Twitter to talk about the Roshan Digital Accounts. The Tweet said that the number of accounts as of 11th of March 2021, has crossed 100,000. Additionally, the central bank’s official account posted a chart showing the cumulative inflow of deposits has reached USD 671 million.
#RoshanDigitalAccount has just crossed 100,000 accounts! They have been opened from over 100 countries around the world. Deposits have reached $671mn, with ½ of these coming in the last 8 weeks alone. To learn more about RDA visit https://t.co/vOxEvdpNTP pic.twitter.com/iJrEWm9Yx3
— SBP (@StateBank_Pak) March 12, 2021
The scheme launched on 10th September 2020 has shown explosive growth. According to the State Bank, Non-Resident-Pakistanis from over 100 countries have opened the account. This figure speaks for the outreach of Roshan Digital Accounts overseas. This translates into a relatively healthier current account for the country as the inflows are rising for Pakistan.
This joint effort between the SBP and commercial banks has the purpose of attracting money in form of investments from the successful Pakistanis abroad, while also giving them incentives like higher interest rates than they get in the banks of the host country.
According to the tweet by the state bank, fifty percent of the $671 million were sent over the last eight weeks. This means that people are starting to trust the initiative and taking interest in the incentives offered to them.
The RDAs enable Pakistanis abroad to remotely open bank accounts in Pakistan through online portals of the banks of their choice without being physically present in the country. Previously, it was impossible and thus it made it very difficult for people living abroad to open accounts to keep or send money to their loved ones in Pakistan.
With the launch of Raast, the payment system has been further streamlined by introducing an instant digital payment facility. This cashless transfer means that unlawful activities can be curtailed, and people can use domestic funds transfer, pay utility bills and tuition fees in Pakistan.
Additionally, RDAs have enabled investment in government securities like Naya Pakistan Certificate. People feel safer with an option of full repatriation of all their money, thus increasing trust in the program.
Read More: RDA gains momentum
According to a statement released by SBP on the 11th of March, the remittances have also been more than $2 billion for the 9th consecutive month. The bank attributes this to the “Policy measures undertaken by the Government and SBP to encourage inflows through formal channels”, among other reasons.