The worldwide standard for online payment like PayPal, has been absent in Pakistan that led the nation to lose out on as much as $2 billion in payments associated to the information and communication technology (ICT) sector.
A new report from the State Bank of Pakistan says that small and medium-sized business exports in the ICT industry made up $1 billion of the value, with the remaining $500 million attributed to freelancer payments for workers that service clients across borders.
Without PayPal or other electronic payment services, customers using Pakistan-based ICT services cannot pay for them digitally. The report stated that the absence of PayPal is a major concern as foreign employers generally make their transactions through PayPal.
The state bank report concluded that proper documentation of that additional $1.5 billion either lost or obscured due to a lack of services like PayPal could support the national economy and release Pakistan from pressure on its foreign currency reserves. The issue also prevents an increase in ICT exports for the country.
A lot of good and successful startups have started their operations, and more keep on coming in Pakistan. The market is appealing, and there is a lot of potential which has remained unexploited because the lack of proper electronic services, but we are gradually making progress to combat the issue.