Finance & Market

  80 percent population in Pakistan is unbanked, says Nadeem Husain, CEO of Tameer Microfinance Bank Although the banking sector in Pakistan has grown on appreciably sound footings on the back of the best regulatory guidelines by the State Bank of Pakistan, however, there still are tremendous opportunities for growth especially in rustic life of the country. It is said that 80 percent population is still un-banked in Pakistan which …

  Boundaries between services and industry are changing fast, and about half of all services in modern industrialized economies are sold and bought while embedded in the form of goods. While the content and function of goods remain important, the designing, marketing, consultancy and advertising services claim a share of the value added to goods. Manufacturing, too, has important contribution from services, such as resource planning, warehousing, value chain analysis, …

  Agriculture contributes nearly one-fourth to Pakistan’s GDP, two of its large-scale industries (textile and sugar) are agro based and nearly 60 percent of total exports comprise of textiles and clothing. This is despite the fact that production and productivity of the sector is very low as compared to the international standards. If right impetus are provided production of major crops can be doubled, which can boost GDP size, create …

  Islamic finance during the past many decades has begun to progress in a great deal on the global front. Besides having the traditional Islamic finance markets in the Middle East, Western countries have also begun to see financial centers opening up. There is now more acceptance and recognition of this alternate financial system. The range and the scope of Islamic finance products over the years have also widened which …

  In countries like Pakistan, the governments facing shortage of revenue, indulge in borrowing to meet their developmental expenditures. While the conventional banks have been the key beneficiaries of such borrowing, Islamic financial institutions (IFIs) face serious liquidity management problems as these can’t invest in Riba-based instruments like Treasury Bills and Pakistan Investment Bonds. Issue of Sovereign Ijara Sukuk and corporate Sukuk on one hand offers an opportunity to invest …

  Pakistan is a country where population is predominantly Muslim and the share if Islamic finance should have increased enormously by this time. The decision of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to let the two systems in parallel was good but the overall response of all the stakeholders, particularly the government has been lackluster. Bulk of the government borrowing from the local market has remained Riba-based, mainly through Treasury Bills …

  Islamic finance based on principals of Shariah provides an alternate to conventional banking. Islamic banking industry size is estimated to be $400 billion with potential to grow at minimum 15 percent to 20 percent globally per year, much faster than conventional financial institutions. This has been the same trend over the last 5 years since 2008. Islamic Banking assets globally are estimated to be $270 billion. The sukuk market …

  On-Line Banking, atms & telecash rule the financial world Although Pakistan offers tremendous opportunities for investment in the financial sector as the country still has a huge un-banked areas particularly the rural population, yet the telecom sector has come out to fill the gap by expanding the outreach even remotest parts of the country. Successful use of information technology in the financial sector is an example, which needs to …

  Even a cursory look at the development of Singapore shows that the country has grown mainly by ‘living within available means’ or avoiding deficit financing. The country has also become hub of industrial and commercial activities because of very low taxes being collected from corporate entities and individuals. The added advantage is confidence in government policies, while Pakistan continues to suffer from budget deficit, trade deficit and on top …

  The banking sector through CY13 faced tough challenges with external factors including law and order situation, political uncertainty, strikes causing closure of bank branches in distressed areas to name a few. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) require banks to have minimum capital of Rs10 billion by December 2014, which will be a challenge for banks below the required threshold forcing another round of mergers and acquisitions review. The …