Pakistan Seeks to Wean Off Visa, Mastercard with Mandatory PayPak Cards

1LINK has proposed making PayPak cards mandatory for government employees' salary accounts and subsidy programmes to reduce Pakistan's dependence on international card schemes such as Visa and Mastercard.

The proposal, shared by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), includes tax incentives, cashback offers, and Point-of-Sale (PoS) mandates at NADRA, Excise, and Passport Offices to encourage wider usage of PayPak cards.

Additionally, 1LINK has suggested offering discounts, cashback, and loyalty rewards for PayPak transactions, particularly for utility bill payments, fuel purchases, public transport, and other government payments.

The proposals align with the SBP's strategy to strengthen Pakistan's domestic payment infrastructure and increase the share of transactions routed through national payment rails, particularly Raast and PayPak.