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Pakistan’s push toward a cashless economy gained momentum as Finance Minister Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb met senior executives from Ant International and Easypaisa to align on digital banking, payments, and financial inclusion.
The meeting at the Finance Division brought together Douglas Feagin, President of Ant International and Senior Vice President of Ant Group; Irfan Wahab Khan, Chairman of Easypaisa Digital Bank; and Jahabzeb Khan, its President and CEO. Discussions centered on speeding up Pakistan’s shift to digital payments, expanding access to formal finance, and using technology to serve individuals and small businesses nationwide.
Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb said the digitization drive now has strong backing at the highest level. He noted clear performance targets across digital infrastructure, payment rails, and government payment digitization. He added that tighter policy coordination allows faster decisions and execution, which should reduce cash reliance and boost digital acceptance.
Douglas Feagin welcomed the engagement and reiterated Ant International’s commitment to Pakistan. He said the group will bring regional experience, technology, and operational expertise from Asia to scale cashless payments and digital finance. He also pointed to Easypaisa’s digital bank license as a key opportunity to build capabilities and expand reach, while acknowledging that cash use remains widespread.
Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb highlighted the role of digital banks and fintechs in inclusive credit, including lending for small farmers. He said agriculture finance must reach more smallholders and that scalable platforms can improve outreach and sustainability. He also stressed the need to diversify the investor base for public debt by enabling retail access through digital channels to government securities.
Irfan Wahab Khan said Easypaisa is moving beyond payments into broader financial services. The focus includes inclusion, customer education, and savings and wealth products. The group noted that the wider distribution of regulated investments needs sustained awareness, which digital platforms can deliver.
The talks also covered cross-border and wallet-based payments using international networks to cut friction. Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb shared the government’s view on rising virtual asset activity and the need for a regulated framework to manage risk, compliance, and consumer protection while enabling innovation. Figures referenced included 2,234.
Both sides discussed tokenization and the potential for regulated, tech-enabled channels to support secure financial products, including government securities and capital markets. Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb also briefed the delegation on macroeconomic stabilization, structural reforms, and external validation milestones.
He outlined priorities to broaden the tax base, fix energy sector issues, reform state-owned enterprises, and advance privatization. He added that stabilization must lead to investment-led growth and deeper strategic economic partnerships.
Feagin said digital payments can improve economic documentation and support tax base expansion, citing outcomes in multiple markets. He reaffirmed commitments to scale QR merchant acceptance and consumer use cases while noting challenges around biometric onboarding, compliance, and verification costs.
The meeting closed with agreement to continue coordination on merchant digitization, customer education, access to regulated savings and investments, and payments modernization. Aurangzeb welcomed concrete proposals to advance the government’s digitization agenda.
