KARACHI: A leading bank in Pakistan on Sunday announced it had launched the country’s first Shariah-compliant point of sale (POS) machine by publishing an advertisement in local newspapers that carried an image of a green device.
“At the backend, the POS machine is supported by the Islamic banking merchant accounts and will reject any non-compliant transactions,” Farhan Ahmed, head of corporate affairs at the HBL Islamic Banking that published the ad, told Arab News on Monday.
“We are installing the machine at different business venues which are Shariah-compliant,” he said.
Ahmed added the POS machine would “only facilitate Shariah-compliant transactions, backed by a Shariah-compliant merchant establishment agreement.”
Financial experts maintain the launch of the POS machine will be helpful for businesses that are reluctant to use interest-based financing modes.
“This will encourage businesses to open Islamic banking accounts, especially the entities that are sensitive to non-compliant dealing,” Ahmed Ali Siddiqui, director at the Center for Excellence in Islamic Finance, said. “Apart from that, it will inspire merchants to open Islamic bank accounts.”
Pakistan, a Muslim-majority country of about 225 million people, has witnessed a robust growth of interest-free or Islamic banking in recent years with asset of over Rs4 trillion and deposits of Rs3.4 trillion.
According to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the assets and deposits of Islamic banking institutions (IBI) achieved a year-on-year growth of 30.6 percent and 28.4 percent, respectively, in March 2021.
The central bank’s record shows the market share of Islamic banking industry’s assets and deposits in the overall banking industry stand at 17 and 18.7 percent.
The SBP wants to achieve a growth target of about 30 percent in the assets and deposits of the country’s Islamic banking sector by 2025.
“The central banking is working on the capacity building of banks and training of human resources to achieve this target,” Mufti Muhammad Zahid, who is associated with the Soneri Bank, said. “We believe the country can easily achieve that growth target by 2025.”
Pakistan became the sixth most important Islamic financial market in the world in 2020, according to the Global Islamic Finance Report, a London-based publication covering developments in the Islamic financial services industry in the world.
The country has five Islamic banks, 17 Islamic banking windows, a vibrant Modaraba sector and a growing Islamic funds management industry with an ever-increasing focus on Islamic microfinance, the report maintained.
It also acknowledged that the country had developed an excellent framework to implement Islamic banking on a comprehensive scale, though it added that Pakistan’s bureaucracy needed to be fully educated and convinced about the potential of Islamic finance.
Pakistani bank launches first Shariah-compliant point of sale machine
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Pakistani bank launches first Shariah-compliant point of sale machine
- HBL Islamic Banking says the machine will be backed by a Shariah-compliant merchant establishment agreement
- According to the Global Islamic Finance Report, Pakistan is the sixth most important Islamic financial market in the world
Pakistan unveils new EV policy with over $353 million in subsidies for electric bikes, rickshaws
- The new policy for 2025-30 aims to cut $1 billion in fuel costs and 4.5 million tons of emissions
- Pakistan currently has about 70,000 electric motorcycles, 5,200 electric cars and 450 electric buses
ISLAMABAD: The government on Thursday unveiled Pakistan’s new Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy 2025-30, announcing a five-year subsidy of over Rs100 billion ($353 million) for electric bikes and rickshaws.
The move comes amid a steady rise in electric vehicle adoption in a market traditionally dominated by Japanese automakers. Pakistan’s urban areas exhibit some of the world’s highest levels of air pollution, with road transport being a major contributor.
Chinese and Korean EV brands are increasingly entering the local market, making these vehicles a more frequent sight in cities such as Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi.
“Total subsidy over five years will be over Rs100 billion and it will basically be focused on the two-and-three wheelers,” Haroon Akhtar Khan, a close aide to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, told a news conference. “We will have subsidized financing for 116,053 electric bikes, 3,171 rickshaws.”
“A Rs9 billion [$31 million] subsidy will be allocated, and it is already there in the 2025-26 budget,” he continued.
Khan added the government also allocated a 25 percent quota for women to increase their mobility.
He projected the initiative will help with the annual savings of Rs283 billion ($1 billion) in fuel costs and a reduction of 4.5 million tons of carbon emissions.
Khan said Pakistan’s new EV policy was aimed at disincentivizing internal combustion engine vehicles and promoting electric mobility to help cut greenhouse gas emissions that damage the earth’s ozone layer.
He informed Pakistan has around 70,000 electric motorcycles, 5,200 electric cars and 450 electric buses, adding the government issued 61 manufacturing licenses for electric two- and three-wheelers including motorcycles and rickshaws.
Khan also acknowledged the country lacks adequate EV charging infrastructure and faces challenges related to the absence of safety and quality standards.
He said the government aims for 30 percent of all new vehicles produced over the next five years to be electric.
“So, we are establishing new electric vehicle testing rules, safety and emission standards,” he said.
“We have to make sure that if anybody is manufacturing an electric vehicle there are no emissions,” he continued. “Another thing is battery disposal. We don’t want to create any environmental problem that the battery is not disposed properly.”
The country previously approved an ambitious National Electric Vehicles Policy (NEVP) in 2019, aiming for electric vehicles to make up 30 percent of all passenger car and heavy-duty truck sales by 2030.
The policy set an even more ambitious target of making 90 percent of all vehicle sales electric by 2040.
Pakistan hosts Bangladeshi academic delegation under OIC’s scientific cooperation framework
- Vice chancellors of Bangladesh universities met counterparts from top 15 Pakistani universities
- Once a single country, Pakistan and Bangladesh have begun slowly rebuilding diplomatic ties
ISLAMABAD: A seven-member delegation from Bangladeshi universities is currently visiting Pakistan to deepen academic and scientific cooperation between the two countries, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s coordinating body for scientific collaboration said on Thursday.
Pakistan and Bangladesh, once a single country before the bloody 1971 war, have slowly begun rebuilding ties after last year’s political upheaval in Dhaka, which saw the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajid, long viewed as critical of Islamabad and aligned with New Delhi.
She fled to India by helicopter after her administration’s downfall in August 2024, with Dhaka now seeking her extradition.
The ties between India and Bangladesh’s interim government have become frosty, creating space for Islamabad and Dhaka to re-engage after decades of limited contact.
“The forum brought together a seven-member Bangladeshi delegation comprising vice chancellors and senior representatives from leading universities, and vice chancellors from 15 top Pakistani universities, which are part of COMSTECH Consortium of Excellence,” the OIC-COMSTECH said in a statement, adding that academics from Bangladesh are visiting Pakistan from June 16-21.
The visiting delegation termed their ongoing visit as “historical, highly productive and promising” for academic collaboration between Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Vice chancellors from Pakistani and Bangladeshi universities held discussions aimed at deepening academic and scientific cooperation, it added.
The meetings focused on expanding collaboration in key areas including student and faculty exchange programs, scholarship opportunities, joint research initiatives apart from sharing academic expertise.
The participants of the meeting also agreed that each university would appoint a focal person to ensure effective follow-up on commitments made during the visit.
Bangladesh High Commissioner to Pakistan Iqbal Hussain Khan, the chief guest at the event, praised COMSTECH for offering scholarships, organizing the visit and facilitating meaningful academic exchanges between higher education institutions of the two countries.
In May, Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar agreed to strengthen bilateral relationship with Bangladesh and maintain high-level contacts with its leadership.
Pakistan’s government launched a new program in December 2024 through which it will provide fully funded scholarships to 300 Bangladeshi students.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Bangladesh Chief Adviser Dr. Muhammad Yunus in New York last year at a ceremony hosted by the Bangladeshi leader to mark the completion of 50 years of Bangladesh’s membership in the United Nations.
Both sides had agreed to forge stronger ties and enhance bilateral cooperation in various fields during their meeting.
Five groups submit qualification documents in Pakistan’s renewed push to privatize PIA
- Eight interested parties, including private firms and a military-backed group, initially submitted expressions of interest
- Pakistan’s Privatization Commission will evaluate the qualification documents before advancing to the next stage
KARACHI: Pakistan has received qualification documents from five investor groups seeking to acquire a controlling stake in its loss-making national carrier, the Privatization Commission said on Thursday, as the government advances a long-delayed divestment plan.
The privatization of state-owned entities has been mandated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as Pakistan works to implement structural reforms and stabilize its economy, which has recently shown signs of macroeconomic improvement.
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), in particular, has survived for years on government bailouts, placing further strain on the country’s already cash-strapped finances.
The government invited expressions of interest in April for a stake ranging from 51 percent to 100 percent in Pakistan International Airlines Corporation Limited (PIACL), along with management control. The final deadline for submitting Statements of Qualification (SOQs) was today.
“The Privatization Commission received Expression of Interest (EOI) from ... eight interested parties,” the official statement said, adding that “five interested parties submitted SOQs by the deadline today.”
Among the groups that submitted documents are a consortium comprising Lucky Cement, Hub Power Holdings, Kohat Cement, and Metro Ventures; a consortium led by Arif Habib Corporation with Fatima Fertilizer, City Schools and Lake City Holdings; Air Blue Limited; Fauji Fertilizer Company Limited, which is a military-backed firm; and a consortium including Serene Air, Augment Securities, Bahria Foundation, Mega C&S Holding and Equitas.
The government had previously attempted to privatize PIA in 2024 but called off the process after receiving a single bid of Rs10 billion ($36 million) from Blue World City — far below the Rs85 billion ($305 million) floor price.
The sale was scrapped, citing the airline’s weak financial position and unattractive terms for buyers.
PIA has long been a fiscal liability, with operational earnings repeatedly offset by heavy debt servicing. However, following restructuring, it reported an operating profit of Rs9.3 billion ($33.1 million) in April, its first in 21 years.
“The SOQs submitted by the parties will be evaluated by the Privatization Commission against the prequalification criteria,” the official statement informed. “The prequalified parties will proceed to the next stage where they will be given access to the virtual data room to undertake buy-side due diligence.”
Pakistan draws five potential buyers for national air carrier
- The interested parties include business groups and a military-backed firm
- The sale is seen as a test of Pakistan’s ability to shed loss-making state firms
ISLAMABAD: In its efforts to sell its struggling national airline, Pakistan has received expressions of interest from five parties, including business groups and a military-backed firm, the Privatization Ministry said on Thursday.
The bids were submitted ahead of a June 19 deadline to acquire up to 100 percent of Pakistan International Airlines, which has accumulated over $2.5 billion in losses in roughly a decade.
Still, following a major restructuring, it posted its first operating profit in 21 years in the year through June 2024.
The sale is seen as a test of Pakistan’s ability to shed loss-making state firms and meet conditions of a $7 billion International Monetary Fund bailout. It would be the country’s first major privatization in nearly two decades.
Eight parties submitted their expressions of interest, but only five of them provided documents of qualification, the ministry said in a statement.
Pakistan calls for Israel’s accountability for Iran war after army chief’s meeting with US president
Pakistan calls for Israel’s accountability for Iran war after army chief’s meeting with US president
- The foreign office condemns Tel Aviv’s ‘unjustified and illegitimate aggression’ during weekly foreign office briefing
- It says Islamabad has always advocated for diplomatic solutions, will support meaningful efforts toward de-escalation
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s foreign office on Thursday called on the international community to end Israel’s ongoing war against Iran, condemning Tel Aviv for launching an “unjustified and illegitimate” attack and demanding its accountability.
The statement came hours after Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, attended a luncheon at the White House hosted by US President Donald Trump, a rare engagement that lasted longer than scheduled.
Trump, who has publicly backed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and stated Iran will not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons, confirmed that the Israel-Iran conflict was discussed during his meeting with Munir.
While he did not share further details, Pakistan has maintained its longstanding position that Israel’s war with Iran threatens to destabilize the region.
“Pakistan strongly condemns unjustified and illegitimate aggression by Israel against the Islamic Republic of Iran,” foreign office spokesperson Ambassador Shafqat Ali Khan said at the outset of his weekly press briefing.
“Pakistan stands in resolute solidarity with the people of Iran and unequivocally denounces these blatant provocations, which constitute a grave danger and a serious threat to the peace, security, and stability of the entire region and beyond, with serious implications,” he added. “The international community and the United Nations bear the responsibility to uphold international law, stop this aggression immediately and hold the aggressor accountable for its actions.”
Khan pointed to a joint statement released earlier this week by 20 countries, including Pakistan, calling for an immediate halt to hostilities in the Middle East and urging de-escalation.
The statement underscored the urgent need to establish “a Middle East Zone Free of Nuclear Weapons and Other Weapons of Mass Destruction,” applying to all states in the region without exception.
It further called on all Middle Eastern countries to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Asked whether the United States sought any “special favor” from Pakistan during the army chief’s meeting with Trump, Khan said both nations share “strong and multifaceted relations” with “a full agenda of interaction and cooperation.”
“So, I don’t know how to characterize or define a special favor,” he remarked.
The spokesperson reiterated that Pakistan has consistently advocated for diplomatic solutions to international conflicts and would support any meaningful initiative in that direction.
