All Banks to be connected with Mobile Operators for Mobile Banking

As per PTA declaration, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) is closely working with State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on the draft of “Third Party Mobile Banking Regulations” which will be finalized soon. Once finalized, it will connect all banks of the country with cellular mobile operators for mobile transactions.

Chairman PTA said that the primary objective of this collaboration is to develop a unified regulatory framework to facilitate the customers of telecom and banking sectors both at a time, since mobile banking involves both financial institutes and mobile phone operators. Telecom sector of Pakistan has shown phenomenal growth in the past few years which has resulted in the expansion of subscriber base and it has also opened up new doors of business opportunities in the telecom sector.

While addressing to a press conference held here today by Nokia Siemens Networks, he further added, Pakistan has overall 63% teledensity while it has great potential for broadband proliferation. Presently there are around 5 lakh broadband subscribers in Pakistan. The broadband subscriber base has grown by 146% in the last fiscal year. He said that it is for the first time that broadband connection charges for 1Mbps connection has dropped below Rs.1000/- providing unusual incentive to new broadband customers.

With such advancement in IT sector in short period of time, PTA is looking to bring revolution in mobile banking, working on Third Party Mobile Banking Regulations. With this all banks will be connected to all mobile operators of the country.

This will surely bring a revolutionary change in banking as having mobile banking in your hand is simply an ease to life. But let’s wait when this happens and how banks come up with it, how people are going to be charged for e-transactions.

Written by Ahsan Javed on December 16, 2009 under Banking, PTA.