Explore Pakistan’s step toward cashless payments in 2025. Learn how Raast and digital banks like UBL, Meezan and Jazz Cash are transforming everyday transactions.
- The Great Cash Exodus: Pakistan’s Cashless Economy
Latest Pakistan’s peshgoi (progress) in this case, the move away from cash is not sci-fi anymore. It’s officially happening. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) recently revealed that nearly 89% of retail transactions are now digital, with Rs164 trillion flying through apps, QR codes, wallets, and Raast in early 2025 alone.
- Raast: Pakistan’s Instant Payment Superhero
Meet Raast, Pakistan’s own real time payment system, brainchild of SBP and Karandaaz, supported by global players like the World Bank.
Since its 2021 debut, Raast has processed over 1.5 billion transactions worth more than Rs34 trillion. In Q2 2025 alone, Raast facilitated 796 million transactions totaling Rs6.4 trillion, a surge that SBP proudly tagged under its “Go Cashless” drive
What makes Raast a unicorn?
- Instant settlement.
- Zero transaction fees.
- Easy Raast IDs linked to mobile numbers and bank accounts.
- Works 24/7.
Basically: yay, no more IBAN nightmares, lengthy transfers, or ATM queues.
- Digital Banks & Fintech
If Raast is the payment engine, digital banks are the fuel.
Take Easypaisa Bank previously a mobile wallet, now Pakistan’s first licensed digital retail bank, fully operational since early 2025.
Players like EMIs Nayapay and Sadapay are also winning over younger, mobile-first users.
These platforms are delivering banking services—savings, transfers, loans straight through smartphones. Imagine opening an account while stuck in Lahore traffic zero branch visits. That’s the future, and it’s now.
- On-the-Ground Realities
Sure, progress is bold, but not everyone is ready for the digital leap (yet).
- POS machines are proliferating. There are now ~140,000 POS terminals across Pakistan, handling 99 million transactions worth Rs550 billion, a 36% volumetric growth in just a year.
- Digital wallets dominated e-commerce payments, covering 94% of online purchases in latest reviews.
- Why Cashless Matters for Pakistan
- Transparency & Tax Wins
Documented transactions mean fewer “uncles in long lanes” and more tax revenue generation for public goods. - Financial Inclusion
Small sellers, freelancers, even street vendors can now track income digitally opening doors to loans, savings, and growth. - E-commerce & Mobility
The digital economy thrives on trust and ease. Pakistan’s momentum here is fueling everything from grocery apps to freelance work.
- The Full Circle: Culture, Tech & Adoption
As Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif affirmed, expanding Raast down to district levels is central to Pakistan’s digital economy goals.
People might still dodge QR codes at their local kiryana shop but trust me, the tide is turning. Whether you’re ordering biryani via app or paying your Utility bill with a scan, cashless is turning from a buzzword into baseline reality.
- Cashless Pakistan or Just Cash-Light?
Yes, challenges remain internet coverage, digital trust, merchant awareness. But the building blocks are here: an omnipresent Raast, licensed digital banks like Easypaisa, rising POS and wallet adoption.
Pakistan isn’t erasing cash overnight, it’s weaving digital payments into everyday life. A future where your maid gets paid via Raast, your teenager shops via online transaction, and your Chacha starts filing taxes with a tap? Not wishful thinking. Just 2025 doing its thing.
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