The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has urged the banking sector to adopt artificial intelligence (AI) and alternative data sources to enhance financial access for underserved segments, including small and medium enterprises (SMEs), the agricultural sector, and women. Speaking at the Pakistan Banking Summit 2025, SBP Governor Jameel Ahmad emphasized the need for banks to rethink their business models and prioritize financial inclusion.
Governor Ahmad highlighted the importance of using AI-driven insights based on alternative data sources, such as cellular and satellite data, to develop cost-effective financial services. He stressed that such technologies could improve digital transactional access, expand outreach to financially excluded groups, and enable secure and efficient banking services. Banks must accelerate efforts to digitize payment solutions for businesses, ensuring widespread access to secure digital platforms.
He further noted that Pakistan’s banking sector remains heavily skewed towards large corporations, with nearly 74% of bank lending directed toward established corporates, while SMEs receive only 5% of total credit. Ahmad emphasized that sustainable economic growth cannot be achieved without addressing this imbalance, calling on banks to focus on mobilizing deposits and increasing credit allocation to SMEs and agriculture.
As part of a broader vision for financial deepening, the SBP governor underscored the importance of private sector credit expansion. He urged financial institutions to assess and mitigate the impact of climate change on credit, market, liquidity, and operational risks. This shift, he said, is crucial to building a more resilient and sustainable financial system.
Governor Ahmad also outlined the SBP’s Strategic Vision 2028, which aims to promote inclusive financial services, drive digital innovation, and enhance the efficiency, fairness, and stability of the financial system. He emphasized that the latest amendments to the SBP Act have formally incorporated financial inclusion as a core function of the central bank, further solidifying its role in fostering economic accessibility.
Pakistan has made notable progress in financial inclusion over the past decade. Ahmad cited that bank account coverage has risen from 47% in 2018 to nearly 64% of the adult population in 2024, while the gender gap in financial access has reduced from 47% to 34%. The SBP’s latest National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS) 2024-2028 sets ambitious targets to increase bank account coverage to 75% of the adult population and reduce the gender gap to 25% by 2028.
To achieve these goals, the SBP aims to enhance the depth, breadth, and quality of financial services, particularly for low-income individuals, the microfinance sector, SMEs, and agriculture. Ahmad urged financial institutions to take an active role in driving this transformation by leveraging AI-powered solutions and embracing digital financial services to ensure a more inclusive and sustainable banking ecosystem.
The central bank’s call for AI-driven financial inclusion reflects its commitment to modernizing Pakistan’s banking landscape. As digital innovation reshapes the financial sector, banks will need to align their strategies with emerging technologies to bridge the financial accessibility gap and support long-term economic growth.
