Branchless banking transactions fall to Rs519.8 billion

KARACHI: Branchless banking transactions dropped 4.4 percent in the third quarter of 2016 due to decline in over the counter transactions following delay in government-to-person payments, said the central bank’s branchless banking (BB) newsletter issued on Friday.    

The value of branchless banking transactions fell to Rs519.8 billion during July-September 2016 from Rs543.6 billion in the previous quarter. The BB transactions stood at Rs526.4 billion in July-September 2015.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said that delay in the tranche of Benazir Income Support Programme affected the volume and value of branchless banking transactions during the quarter under review.

“The reduction in such transactions may be transitory in nature and is likely to improve in the subsequent quarters,” the SBP newsletter said.      

The BB deposits also decreased to Rs8.5 billion from Rs13.7 billion, showing a decline of 38 percent as compared to the previous quarter. The average deposits per account dropped to Rs500 at the end of third quarter from Rs942 over the April-June quarter.

The slide in these deposits is attributed to seasonal outflow related to Eid festivities falling in the month of September. However, the number of branchless banking accounts of the industry increased to 16.9 million from 14.6 million, depicting a 16 percent growth during July-September 2016 quarter.