In December, the Roshan Digital Account (RDA) started in year 2020 witnessed an inflow of $160 million, marking a 17% increase compared to November 2023, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). Out of this total, $7 million has been repatriated, while $120 million has been utilized locally, resulting in a net repatriable liability of $34 million. Cumulative inflows for RDAs surpassed $7.2 billion by the end of December.
The SBP reported that the total number of RDA accounts opened reached 651,057, up from 640,875 at the end of November. As of December-end, the cumulative RDA inflow was $7.195 billion, with $1.538 billion repatriated and $4.442 billion utilized locally. The total net repatriable liability stood at $1.215 billion.
Breaking down the outstanding liability, $786 million is in Naya Pakistan Certificates, with $331 million in conventional NPCs and $455 million in Islamic instruments. Additionally, $375 million is categorized as ‘balances in accounts,’ according to the SBP. Roshan Equity Investments showed marginal improvement, reaching $30 million.
BACKGROUND
The SBP introduced RDA in September 2020, and it is one of Pakistan’s main sources of inflows of foreign currency. RDA has made a significant contribution to the nation’s foreign reserves by offering up to 8% profit on investments made in US dollars.
In an attempt to increase remittance inflows, the central bank last year added a ‘Diamond’ category to the Sohni Dharti Remittance Programme, offering account holders in this category better rewards and extra perks.
