For millions in Pakistan, credit is not a tool for indulgence. It is a tool for survival.
FINANCIAL INCLUSION
For millions in Pakistan, credit is not a tool for indulgence. It is a tool for survival.
A small shopkeeper looking to replenish inventory before the festive season. A farmer needing funds for seeds and fertilizer. A home-based entrepreneur seeking working capital to fulfil growing orders. These are not individuals seeking luxury; they are seeking opportunities to sustain their livelihoods. Yet for far too many Pakistanis, access to formal credit remains out of reach.
The conversation around lending in Pakistan often centres on risk, defaults and affordability. While these are important considerations, they overlook a more fundamental challenge: Pakistan does not have a credit demand problem; it has an access problem.
Despite being a country of over 250 million people, formal credit penetration for SMEs remains alarmingly low, at just five per cent, far below regional counterparts such as Indonesia, India, Bangladesh and Kenya. The challenge is particularly acute for under-served segments, including women, low-income households, gig workers, and micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). Limited access to formal financing constrains their ability to grow, create jobs, and contribute more meaningfully to economic development.
The reasons are well known. Traditional lending models often require extensive documentation, physical branch visits, established banking histories, and collateral that many potential borrowers simply do not possess. Processing times can stretch from days into weeks, making formal credit impractical for individuals and businesses that need timely financial support.
For people living in remote areas, these barriers become even more pronounced. Distance from financial institutions, limited awareness, and high onboarding requirements combine to create a cycle of exclusion that prevents millions from participating fully in the formal financial system. The result is not a lack of demand for credit, but a lack of access to it.
Fortunately, technology is beginning to change this reality. Industry reports highlight that AI-driven lending products can reduce operational costs by 20-70 per cent in targeted areas and lower default rates by 30 per cent, showing technology’s potential to improve both efficiency and risk management.
easypaisa Digital Bank is already showing what this shift can look like on the ground. Through digital lending products such as easyCash and Merchant Cash Loans, it leverages digital footprints, transaction histories, and alternative data sources to extend financing to segments traditionally under served by formal banking particularly individuals and businesses that may lack traditional credit histories.
As Pakistan advances towards a more digital and inclusive financial future, the success of our financial system will not be measured by how much credit exists in the market but by how widely that credit can be accessed
The future of lending lies in combining AI-assisted credit scoring, alternative data and digital financial activity with strong risk governance to assess creditworthiness more comprehensively. This enables faster, more efficient and lower-cost access to credit, while robust controls, continuous monitoring and explainable models support responsible scaling and greater economic participation.
easypaisa has built one of the country’s richest repositories of customer payment and transaction data. From a small farmer in Layyah and a kiryana store owner in Swabi to a gig worker in Karachi, millions of customers use easypaisa every day to receive and send money, pay suppliers and vendors, and manage their everyday financial needs.
Digital transaction trails provide valuable insights into financial behavior, helping assess income, cash flows, repayment capacity and overall creditworthiness beyond traditional financial data. For customers and small businesses, this enables faster, simpler access to financing through digital channels, unlocking working capital, entrepreneurship and economic opportunity at scale.
Financial institutions cannot take the responsibility of extending credit access alone. It requires
collaboration across regulators, financial institutions, fintechs, telecommunications providers, and the broader digital ecosystem. It will demand continued investment in digital infrastructure, financial literacy, consumer safeguards, and data-driven innovation.
Most importantly, it will require a shift in mindset.
The question is no longer whether Pakistanis need credit. Demand is evident across every segment of society. The real challenge is ensuring that deserving individuals and businesses can access credit quickly, securely, and responsibly.
Financial inclusion is not complete when someone simply opens an account. It becomes meaningful when we educate and enable people to confidently use financial services including payments, savings, investments, insurance and credit to improve their quality of life, build financial resilience, and create economic opportunities. Access to credit lies at the heart of that journey.
As Pakistan advances towards a more digital and inclusive financial future, the success of our financial system will not be measured by how much credit exists in the market but by how widely that credit can be accessed.
For millions of Pakistanis, access is the real gap. And closing that gap may be one of the most important economic opportunities of our time.
The writer is the chief digital lending officer at easypaisa Digital Bank.
