NayaPay FinTech Gets License to Operate in Pakistan

NayaPay has become the first electronic money institution (EMI) in Pakistan, after the company was granted commercial approval to operate by the country’s central bank, according to a company announcement Thursday (Sept. 2).

Sponsored by one of Pakistan’s leading business conglomerates, Lakson Group, NayaPay is focused on helping get more residents into the mainstream financial services ecosystem and addressing the needs of underbanked citizens, the announcement stated.

With the commercial approval now out of the way, the firm has plans to fully launch the NayaPay consumer app, in which users can create a digital wallet on their smartphones within minutes using their computerized national identity card (CNIC), according to the announcement.

Once a user signs up, a Visa virtual card is linked to their account for online purchases. A physical Visa debit card will also be available to users free of charge upon request, giving them access to over 46 million merchants’ payments globally, the announcement stated.

Commenting on the EMI license approval, NayaPay Founder and CEO Danish A. Lakhani said in the release that the company is keen to open services that were previously only accessible to a small number of consumers to a wider consumer base.

“We believe that the future of commerce is fast, accessible and ubiquitous,” he said in the announcement. “NayaPay aims to be at the forefront in the digitization of Pakistan with our low cost and secure digital platform, which enables payments, communications and intuitive interactions between individuals and businesses.”

See also: With a Larger Population Than Brazil, Pakistan’s Newly Digital SMBs Offer Huge Opportunity

The company has partnered with several leading banks to enable users to pay merchants on NayaPay as well as easily move money from other banks to NayaPay for their everyday payments needs, according to the announcement.

Merchant clients stand to benefit too, as they can receive payments, pay expenses and transfer funds to other banks using their digital wallets, the announcement stated.

The company also shared upcoming plans for small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs), which will have access to a new platform called Arc, designed to provide digital payments acceptance and access to financial management tools.