Overseas Pakistanis deposit $310mn in June through RDA

KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has said that overseas Pakistanis have deposited $1.56 billion through Roshan Digital Account (RDA) during the past 10 months, while June 2021 saw the highest monthly amount of deposits i.e. $310 million.
In a statement, the SBP said that since its launch by Prime Minister Imran Khan on September 10, 2020, Roshan Digital Account has attracted significant interest from overseas Pakistanis.
“A total of 181,556 accounts have been opened from 171 countries across the world and $ 1.562 billion has been deposited in these accounts through end-June 2021,” said the statement. The central bank said that in line with its commitment to transparency in its key policy measures, it has begun releasing regular data on the progress of Roshan Digital Account (RDA).
This web page will be updated on a monthly basis. This periodic update was also requested by market participants. The web page shows monthly trends in the number of accounts opened, deposits, and investments in Naya Pakistan Certificates (NPCs) and the stock market.
The data shows an accelerating trend across all these dimensions over the last few months. June 2021 saw the highest monthly amount of deposits ($310 million) and NPC investments ($233 million) since the launch of Roshan Digital Account. As of end-June 2021, $ 1050 million has been invested in NPCs, with $621 million in conventional NPCs and $429 million in Islamic NPCs.
Roshan Digital Account 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.
The account enables overseas Pakistanis to undertake all kinds of banking transactions in Pakistan, including paying school and utility bills for their families, funds transfer, e-commerce, car financing through Roshan Apni Car and making charitable donations through Roshan Samaji Khidmat.
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. – TLTP