Digital Pakistan 2022: Broadband Penetration Soars to 90% of 15+ Population

[Riaz Haq]

The year 2022 was a very rough year for Pakistan. The nation was hit by devastating floods that badly affected tens of millions of people. Macroeconomic indicators took a nose dive as political instability reached new heights. In the middle of such bad news, Pakistan saw installation of thousands of kilometers of new fiber optic cable, inauguration of a new high bandwidth PEACE submarine cable connecting Karachi with Africa and Europe, and millions of new broadband subscriptions. Broadband penetration among 140 million (59% of 236 million population) Pakistanis in  the15-64 years age group reached almost 90%. This new digital infrastructure helped grow technology adoption in the country. 

Internet and Mobile Phone Banking Growth in 2021-22. Source: State ...

Fintech: 

Mobile phone banking and internet banking grew by 141.1% to Rs. 11.9 trillion while Internet banking jumped 81.1% to reach Rs10.2 trillion.  E-commerce transactions also accelerated, witnessing similar trends as the volume grew by 107.4% to 45.5 million and the value by 74.9% to Rs106 billion, according to the State Bank of Pakistan.  

Pakistan Startup Funding in 2022. Source: i2i Investing

Fintech startups continued to draw investments in the midst of a slump in venture funding in Pakistan. Fintech took $10 million from a total of $13.5 million raised by tech startups in the fourth quarter of 2022, according to the data of Invest2Innovate (i2i), a startups consultancy firm. In Q3 of 2022, six out of the 14 deals were fintech startups, compared to two deals of e-commerce startups. Fintech startups raised $38 million which is 58% of total funding ($65 million) in Q3 2022, compared to e-commerce startups that raised 19% of total funding. The i2i data shows that in Q3 2022, fintech raised 37.1% higher than what it raised in Q2 2022 ($27.7 million). Similarly, in Q2 2022, the total investment of fintech was 63% higher compared to what it raised in Q1 2022 ($17 million).

E-Commerce in Pakistan. Source: State Bank of Pakistan

E-Commerce:

E-commerce continued to grow in the country. Transaction volume soared 107.4% to 45.5 million while the value of transactions jumped 75% to Rs. 106 billion over the prior year, according to the State Bank of Pakistan. 

Pakistan Among World's Top 10 Smartphone Markets. Source: NewZoo

PEACE Cable: 

Pakistan and East Africa Connecting Europe (PEACE) cable, a  96 TBPS (terabits per second), 15,000 km long submarine cable, went live in 2022. It brought to 10 the total number of submarine cables currently connecting or planned to connect Pakistan with the world: TransWorld1, Africa1 (2023), 2Africa (2023), AAE1, PEACE,  SeaMeWe3, SeaMeWe4, SeaMeWe5, SeaMeWe6 (2025) and IMEWE. PEACE cable has two landing stations in Pakistan: Karachi and Gwadar. SeaMeWe stands for Southeast Asia Middle East Western Europe, while IMEWE is India Middle East Western Europe and AAE1 Asia Africa Europe 1. 

Mobile Data Consumption Growth in Pakistan. Source: ProPakistan

Fiber Optic Cable: 

The first phase of a new high bandwidth long-haul fiber network has been completed jointly by One Network, the largest ICT and Intelligent Traffic and Electronic Tolling System operator in Pakistan, and Cybernet, a leading fiber broadband provider.  The joint venture has deployed 1,800 km of fiber network along motorways and road sections linking Karachi to Hyderabad (M-9 Motorway), Multan to Sukkur (M-5 Motorway), Abdul Hakeem to Lahore (M-3 Motorway), Swat Expressway (M-16), Lahore to Islamabad (M-2 Motorway) and separately from Lahore to Sialkot (M-11 Motorway), Gujranwala, Daska and Wazirabad, according to Business Recorder newspaper.

Mobile telecom service operator Jazz and Chinese equipment manufacturer Huawei have commercially deployed FDD (Frequency Division Duplexing) Massive MIMO (Multiple Input and Output) solution based on 5G technology on a large scale in Pakistan. Jazz and Huawei claim it represents a leap into the 4.9G domain to boost bandwidth. 

Pakistan Telecom Indicators November 2022. Source: PTA

 

Pakistan's RAAST P2P System Taking Off. Source: State Bank of Pakistan

Broadband Subscriptions:

Pakistan has 124 million broadband subscribers as of November, 2022, according to Pakistan Telecommunications Authority.  Broadband penetration among 140 million (59% of 236 million) Pakistanis in 15-64 years age bracket is 89%.  Over 20 million mobile phones were locally manufactured/assembled in the country in the first 11 months of the year. 

Bank Account Ownership in Pakistan. Source: Karandaaz

Financial Inclusion Doubled In Pakistan in 5 Years. Source: Karandaaz

Documenting Pakistan Economy:

Pakistan's unbanked population is huge, estimated at 100 million adults, mostly women. Its undocumented economy is among the world's largest,  estimated at 35.6% which represents approximately $542 billion at GDP PPP levels, according to World Economics. The nation's tax to GDP ratio (9.2%) and formal savings rates (12.72%) are among the lowest. The process of digitizing the economy could help reduce the undocumented economy and increase tax collection and formal savings and investment in more productive sectors such as export-oriented manufacturing and services. Higher investment in more productive sectors could lead to faster economic growth and larger export earnings. None of this can be achieved without some semblance of political stability. 

Related Links:

Haq's Musings

South Asia Investor Review

Digital Silk Road

State Bank Targets Fully Digital Economy in Pakistan

Campaign of Fear Against CPEC

Fintech Revolution in Pakistan

E-Commerce in Pakistan

The Other 99% of the Pakistan Story

FMCG Boom in Pakistan

Pakistan at 75

Fiber Network Growth in Pakistan

Riaz Haq's Youtube Channel

 

PakAlumni Social Network

[Riaz Haq]

Pakistan hits 200 million telecom subscribers, with 150 million broadband users - Profit by Pakistan Today

https://profit.pakistantoday.com.pk/2025/06/20/pakistan-hits-200-mi...

To mark the milestone, mobile operators offer 2GB free data and 200 on-net minutes to all users, valid for 24 hours on June 20, 2025

Pakistan has reached a historic milestone in its digital growth, with the number of telecom subscribers surpassing 200 million, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) announced. This includes 150 million broadband subscribers and more than 2 million Fiber To The Home (FTTH) users.

The PTA described the achievement as a testament to the country’s accelerated digital progress and their ongoing commitment to inclusive connectivity. As part of the celebration, the PTA, in collaboration with mobile network operators such as Jazz, Telenor, Ufone, Zong, and SCO, is offering all mobile users a special promotion: 2GB of free data and 200 on-net minutes, valid for 24 hours on Friday, June 20, 2025. To avail of this offer, subscribers can dial *2200#.

The PTA also emphasized its efforts to promote digital inclusion, particularly for female students. Alongside telecom companies like PTCL, Transworld, Nayatel, Cybernet, and Wateen, PTA is deploying free Wi-Fi hotspots at selected universities recognized by the Higher Education Commission (HEC), with a special focus on women-only institutions. This initiative aims to improve access to online learning resources for students across the country.

Additionally, mobile phone manufacturers have donated 200 locally assembled smartphones, which will be distributed to female SIM card holders across Pakistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and Gilgit-Baltistan via computerized balloting.

The number of telecom subscribers has now reached 200 million, with teledensity slightly decreasing from 81.4% in June 2023 to 81.21% in June 2025. However, broadband penetration has seen considerable growth, rising from 53.6% in June 2023 to 60.8% by June 2025.


During the event, IT and Telecom Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja confirmed that Pakistan is moving forward with plans to launch 5G internet services, with work already underway.

[Riaz Haq]

Pakistan’s retail landscape has undergone a significant digital transformation, with nearly 90% of retail payments now processed through digital channels, according to the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) latest Quarterly Payment Systems Review for Q3 FY25.

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Digital payments surge as mobile apps and Raast drive growth in third quarter
SBP reports 12% rise in retail transaction volumes and 22% growth in mobile-based payments

https://profit.pakistantoday.com.pk/2025/06/25/digital-payments-sur...

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The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has reported continued growth in the country’s digital payment landscape, with a 12% increase in retail transaction volumes and an 8% rise in value during the third quarter of FY25. According to SBP’s Quarterly Payment Systems Review, total retail transactions reached 2.4 billion, valued at PKR 164 trillion, with 89% conducted through digital channels.

Mobile apps, including banking apps and e-wallets, processed 1.7 billion transactions worth PKR 27 trillion—up 16% in volume and 22% in value. Mobile banking app users rose 7% to 22.6 million, while e-money and branchless wallet users increased to 5.3 million (up 12%) and 68.5 million (up 6%) respectively.

E-commerce transactions climbed 40% in volume to 213 million and 34% in value to PKR 258 billion, with digital wallets accounting for 94% of the total. In-store POS transactions reached 99 million, worth PKR 550 billion, processed by over 140,000 merchants. QR code payments also grew, with 21.7 million transactions totalling PKR 61 billion.

SBP’s own platforms, Raast and RTGS, played a key role. Raast processed 371 million transactions worth PKR 8.5 trillion this quarter, bringing cumulative volume since launch to 1.5 billion and value to PKR 34 trillion. RTGS handled PKR 347 trillion in large-value payments across 1.5 million transactions.

The central bank credited the growth to its digital finance strategy and collaborative efforts by banks, fintechs, and payment providers, reaffirming its commitment to financial inclusion and payment system efficiency.

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State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has released its Quarterly Payment Systems Review for Q3 FY25,

providing summary on the payment systems, and presenting notable changes in the digital

payment landscape of the country.

https://www.sbp.org.pk/psd/pdf/PS-Review-Q3FY25.pdf