MoU signed to issue NSCs digitally

KARACHI: Central Directorate of National Savings (CDNS) and Central Depository Company of Pakistan Limited (CDC) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for mutually collaborating to convert and issue National Savings Certificates (NSCs) in digital form, a statement said.

The process would reduce physical process flows of different transactions and develop a systematic framework through which NSCs could be inducted into the Central Depository System (CDS), it added.

Addressing the occasion, director general CDNS Hamid Raza said, “The initiative is in line with CDNS’ ultimate objective of the digitisation of NSCs.”

The recent circumstances with the shift to digitisation make it all the more pressing for CDNS to undergo complete digital transformation, he added.

Raza said the platform would facilitate investors of NSCs, making it easier for them to invest in and maintain their NSCs in electronic format, thereby promoting and harvesting the savings culture in Pakistan at the grass root level.

Describing objectives of the project, chief executive officer at CDC Badiuddin Akber said, “The core objective of establishing a depository in Pakistan was to dematerialise all types of financial instruments.”

“Considering this as our ultimate vision, we have dematerialised almost all types of securities in Pakistan; however, NSC are one major aspect yet to be dematerialised,” he added.

Akber emphasized to bring the processes at par with the international best practices, saying it was need of the hour that a mechanism must be developed for investors to have NSCs in book-entry form.

Through the project, CDC aims to facilitate investors, with investment in a diverse array of securities, to maintain their complete portfolio of dematerialised securities in a single account at CDC.