Foreign inflows in Roshan Digital Accounts rise to $1.869 billion

KARACHI: Overseas Pakistanis have remitted approximately $1.869 billion through Roshan digital accounts (RDAs) in last 10 months, according to the central bank on Thursday, using funds for financial transactions and investments in their homeland

Around 199,747 accounts have been opened from 175 countries since its launching in September last year. An amount of Rs1.562 billion was deposited in these accounts in June.

The State Bank of Pakistan’s data showed that $1.278 billion has been invested in Naya Pakistan Certificates (NPCs) as of July 31, 2021, with $763 million in conventional NPCs and $515 million in Islamic NPCs.

Since its launch, RDA has attracted significant interest from overseas Pakistanis.

RDA inflows have provided support to the country’s foreign exchange reserves.

The SBP expects with the contained current account deficit and healthy commercial, official, portfolio and FDI inflows, Pakistan’s external financing needs of around $20 billion are expected to be more than fully met in FY2022.

As a result, foreign exchange reserves are projected to rise further.

Pakistan successfully raised an additional $1 billion through a tap issuance of its Eurobond that fetched $2.5 billion in March.

Pakistan is likely to receive $2.8 billion from the International Monetary Fund by the end of this month as the Board of Governors of the IMF has approved a general allocation of Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) equivalent to $650 billion to boost global liquidity.

RDA is a landmark initiative of the State Bank which seamlessly connects the Pakistani diaspora to the Pakistani financial system and economy.

For the first time, it allows overseas Pakistanis to open a bank account in Pakistan in a completely digital manner, without needing to visit any bank branch or embassy.

At the same time, the account provides exclusive investment opportunities in Naya Pakistan certificates offering attractive returns in both conventional and Shariah-compliant forms, as well as the Pakistani stock market and real estate.

The tax treatment is simple, freeing overseas Pakistanis from the need to file a tax return in Pakistan on income derived from investments through the account.

Importantly, the account is fully repatriable, giving overseas Pakistanis the comfort of being able to remit the money in their accounts back to where they live without any difficulty.