Major Step Forward to Improve Access to Finance in Pakistan Amid COVID-19

Pakistan’s micro, small and medium sized enterprises and individual consumers are set to benefit from the creation of an electronic registry that allows for the country’s financial institutions to use moveable assets such as agricultural produce as collateral for loans.

The move follows the launch of the collateral registry by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), supported by IFC, a member of the World Bank Group. It’s part of work undertaken by the Bank Group since 2015 to boost access to finance in Pakistan, which includes changes to improve the country’s legal and regulatory framework for secured transactions, as part of Pakistan’s Doing Business reform initiative.