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ATM transactions reach Rs3.20 trillion in FY15

KARACHI: The value of transactions handled by automated teller machines (ATMs) rose 21 percent to Rs3.20 trillion during the last fiscal year 2014/15, showing ATMs remained the most preferable retail mode, serving the needs of general consumers for payments, the central bank’s payment’s system review said on Wednesday. During FY14/15,

By Erum Zaidi
September 03, 2015
KARACHI: The value of transactions handled by automated teller machines (ATMs) rose 21 percent to Rs3.20 trillion during the last fiscal year 2014/15, showing ATMs remained the most preferable retail mode, serving the needs of general consumers for payments, the central bank’s payment’s system review said on Wednesday.
During FY14/15, the volume of ATM transactions reached around 300 million, depicting a growth of 16 percent in comparison with the previous fiscal year 2013/14.
Cash withdrawal is the major contributor in this increase of ATM transactions over the year contributing around 96 percent in volume and 83 percent in value.
ATM transactions are 11 percent of the total retail electronic payments for FY14/15. During FY14/15, cash withdrawal through ATMs has increased by 16 percent in terms of volume from 248.40 million to 288.89 million, while value has increased by 23 percent from Rs2.16 trillion to Rs2.66 trillion.
The report said despite the progress in ATMs use, the increasing operational cost creates impediments for the banks in investing in their payment infrastructure.
Performance issues in the area of ATM services such as frequent cash outages, network and power availability issues, cost of alternative energy sources, problems in cash supply chain management also result in inefficiencies.
Real time gross settlement (RTGS), a large value payment system processed 772,421 transactions worth Rs219.40 trillion during the last fiscal year 2014/15 as compared to 600,343 transactions worth Rs149.30 trillion in the fiscal year 2013/14, showing an increase of 29 percent in volume and 47 percent in terms of value.
These transactions are approximately eight times of GDP (at current basic prices) of Pakistan and 59 percent of the total number of transactions in the country for FY14/15.
The SBP, being a core contributor to the National Payment Systems development, is playing its key roles as a regulator, operator and facilitator - in achieving its public policy objectives of safety and efficiency of National Payment Systems.
The industry is also working on the implementation of Digital Image Based cheque processing, whereby clearing process is expected to become more efficient, reducing the physical transmission of cheques in the clearing process.
The pace of change in payments globally is accelerating. The proliferation of mobile phones, the rapid growth of e-commerce, technological developments such as smartphones and Near Field Communication (NFC) and Card Not Present Payments are resulting in the emergence of new ways to pay.
However, cash still remains the most preferred payment instrument for discharging obligations at the retail level in Pakistan.
The SBP has provided guidance to the industry to promote transformation of manual / paper-based transactions to electronic payments and also to automate back office functions of banks. It is also considering developing rules for the electronic funds transfer.
Moreover, the SBP is also coordinating with the banking industry to implement Straight Through Processing (STP). Some banks are already proceeding to make necessary technological developments for the successful implementation of STP.
Further, Rules for Clearing House and Risk Management Framework in Settlement Systems are also in development process.