lessbankingsector,mobilewalletsreachedahighof 33
millionasof 2017 .Thedigitalpayments,whichallowyour
smartphonetostoremoneyandtransferdigitally,so
popularistheeasetheyoffer.Accordingtoajournal
publishedbyLahoreSchoolofEconomics,"Pakistanisan
emergingmarketforFintech,withincreasingfacilitation
fordigitalpayments,widespreadinternetandsmartphone
penetration,consumerpreferencesforsocialmediaand
boomingonlinecommerce.Also,theStateBankofPakistan
providessoundregulations,whichactasaplatformfor
Fintechgrowth.Whileregulationsarenecessary,they
mightalsobecomeathreatforanindustrystillinits
infancy".
Mobilewallets,onlinepayments,prepaidcards,and
digitalsavingsaccountsareallexamplesofFintech.The
goodnewsisthattheregulatorybarriersaremeltingaway
12 | Startup Insider
intechhasbeena“hot”sectorfor
quitesometimenow.Electronic
paymentsarebecomingtheindispen-
sableandspecializedtoolforpeople
acrossPakistan.Accordingtothe
latestStateBankstatisticsonbranch-F
anditwillbecomesmootheryearafteryearandthedaywill
comeinPakistanwhenthecustomerswilltapintotheworld
throughadigitalwindow;accordingly,theyexpectaccessto
financialservicesthroughdigitalchannels.Already,wesee
manybankspartneringwithfintechstoelevatetheiroffering.
ThefintechlandscapeofPakistaninthreetofiveyearswill
likelyfeatureamixofsmall,disruptivestartupsalongwitha
fieldofconsolidatedincumbents.
AccordingtoPakistanEconomist,"therewouldbecertain
trendsinthefuturethatwillpartiallyifnotentirelychangethe
waypaymentsaremadewithadvancementsintheFintech
industry.Creditanddebitcardswillstartbecoming
supersededandthepreferredmodeofpaymentwillbe
throughmobilewallets.Carryingyourmobilephonewill
becomeessentialforallsortsoftransactions".
Ifyouhavevisitedanydevelopedcountryinpasttwo-three
years,itisthecommonpracticeovertherenowadays.Most
ofthepeopledonotcarrycurrencywiththemselvesandithas
beenoutdatedtopaythroughcash.Soitistheneedofthe
hourtonotonlyinvestandsupportthelocalupcoming
Fintechinthecountrybuttocreateanenvironmentconducive
tothegrowthofFintechinPakistan.TECHNOLOGY
FINTECH - A NEW AVENUE,
A NEW OPPORTUNITY
By Wahab Altaf