The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has reported an improvement in the country’s Financial Inclusion Index, which increased to 59.5 in calendar year 2025 from 58.1 in 2024. The latest results indicate progress in access to financial services, their active use and the quality of services available to consumers. The index measures the extent of financial inclusion across Pakistan and provides an overview of how individuals and businesses interact with the formal financial system. According to the central bank’s announcement on October 7, the improvement was largely driven by growth in the Usage sub-index, followed by gains in Access and Quality. The results also point to the role of digital financial services and initiatives under the National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS) 2024–28 in expanding participation in the financial sector.
The 2025 index recorded an Access score of 74.1, a Usage score of 68.5 and a Quality score of 43.5. These indicators measure different aspects of financial inclusion and offer a more detailed picture of the sector’s progress. Access reflects the availability of financial infrastructure, including physical and digital channels, as well as efforts to make basic financial products and services available to underserved groups. Usage measures how actively people use the financial system through activities such as deposits, mobile banking, insurance, financing and payments. Quality assesses factors including customer convenience, financial literacy, service diversification, sustainability and the equitable distribution of financial services. The difference between the sub-index scores suggests that while access and usage have advanced, service quality remains an important area for further improvement.
SBP identified several developments that contributed to the increase in the overall index. These included the onboarding of merchants onto Raast and the expansion of its payment ecosystem, the introduction of digital banks and account-opening initiatives. Together, these measures are intended to make financial services easier to access and use, while encouraging greater participation in formal banking and digital payment channels. Raast, Pakistan’s instant payment system, supports digital transactions and provides infrastructure for person-to-person and person-to-merchant payments. Merchant onboarding is particularly relevant to the transition from cash-based transactions to electronic payments, as it allows participating businesses to receive payments digitally. Digital banks and account-opening drives can also help bring customers into the formal financial system, although the extent of their impact depends on continued adoption and regular use.
The central bank also highlighted consumer orientation and financial literacy as factors reinforcing the improvement. Financial inclusion involves more than opening accounts or making payment services available; customers must understand how to use these services and be able to access them conveniently. Financial literacy can help consumers make informed decisions about saving, borrowing, payments and other financial products. Similarly, improvements in service quality can influence whether customers continue using formal financial channels. With the Quality sub-index standing at 43.5, the latest results indicate that this dimension remains behind the Access and Usage measures. Addressing usability, awareness and the availability of suitable products will therefore remain important to making financial services more effective for a wider range of consumers.
The findings provide an indicator of progress under Pakistan’s National Financial Inclusion Strategy 2024–28, which seeks to expand access to and use of formal financial services. For the country’s banking and fintech sectors, the rise in the index highlights the importance of digital payments, merchant acceptance and technology-enabled banking services in broadening financial participation. However, the overall score should be considered alongside the individual sub-indices, particularly the comparatively lower Quality score. Continued improvements in access, active usage and customer experience will be important in determining whether the expansion of digital financial services translates into lasting financial inclusion. The SBP’s 2025 results establish an updated benchmark for tracking these developments as Pakistan continues implementing its financial inclusion initiatives.
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