ISLAMABAD (Kashmir English): Mobile Wallet and digital banking customers who have not yet completed biometric verification may face service disruptions from today (October 25) as new regulations introduced by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) in July take effect.
Central bank’s regulatory ambit
The regulations had mandated streamlining of account opening and customer onboarding processes by all institutions under the SBP’s regulatory ambit, including Banks, DFIs, MFBs, Digital Banks, and EMIs.
As per the July 25 circular, all SBP-regulated entities need to “streamline the account opening/customer onboarding process and improve the customer experience”.
One of the new requirements introduced was that biometric verification of the account or wallet operator should be made the primary verification method for all accounts and digital wallets.
The previous system had allowed operators to take up to 60 days to complete biometric verification before a debit block was imposed on their account.
With the new rules going into effect starting today, tens of millions of account-holders who have not completed biometric verification could lose the ability to operate them, industry sources feared.
They also expressed concerns regarding individuals operating foreign currency accounts for sending or receiving remittances.
The requirements are part of SBP’s Anti Money Laundering/Countering Financing of Terrorism/Counter Proliferation Financing Regulations.
