May 09, 2022 (MLN): Foreign exchange inflows through Roshan Digital Account (RDA) have crossed $4bn and reached at $4.2 billion by April 2022 since its launch in September 2020, showing the growing confidence of non-residents Pakistanis (NRPs), the latest data released by State Bank of Pakistan showed.
In the month of April 2022 alone, the overseas Pakistanis deposited $245mn into RDA.
Of the total $4.2bn, around 66% or $2.75bn was invested in high-return Naya Pakistan Certificates (NPCs) during twenty months. Meanwhile, a small part of the $38 million investment has been observed in the equity market.
So far, 403,750 accounts have been opened from around 175 counties across different Pakistani banks.
Since the start of the RDA, a banking facility for Pakistani abroad, the previous government had made a number of decisions to make the scheme more attractive by reducing the tax compliance costs. Further, the government has made the taxation system easy, convenient, and hassle-free for NRPs to open and operate these accounts without being physically present in the country.
It is pertinent to note that the funds in these accounts can be fully repatriated without the prior approval of the SBP.
Recently, the new government has lauded SBP’s initiative and said that it is fully committed to support RDA which allows Pakistan’s diaspora to invest in their homeland on very attractive terms.
