KARACHI: The currency in circulation (CiC) in Pakistan reached Rs10.967 trillion as of November 14, 2025, up 18.9 per cent from a year earlier, the central bank’s data showed on Monday.
The CiC saw a week-on-week (WoW) rise of 0.2 per cent and a month-on-month (MoM) increase of 1.5 per cent.Total deposits with banks amounted to Rs28.972 trillion, reflecting a 0.1 per cent increase from the previous month and a 9.8 per cent rise from a year earlier. Consequently, the combined value of cash in circulation and bank deposits pushed Pakistan’s broad money (M2) to Rs39.984 trillion as of November 14. This shows a 12.2 per cent increase from a year ago and a 0.5 per cent increase from the previous month.
The growth in CiC underscores rising liquidity in the economy, demonstrating an increased demand for physical currency, despite the government’s efforts to promote digitisation.Saad Hanif, head of research at Ismail Iqbal Securities, said that the rising trend in M2 reflects a measured pickup in liquidity despite aggressive monetary easing.
“Growth remains deposit-driven, while currency in circulation rising 1.5 per cent MoM keeps the CiC/M2 ratio elevated near 28 per cent, highlighting persistent cash preference and informality,” Hanif said.
“Deposit growth is improving but still lagging, indicating a gradual transmission of lower rates into the banking system,” he added.“Overall, monetary expansion is moderate, not inflationary, and broadly aligned with nominal GDP, signalling a stable liquidity backdrop but continued structural reliance on cash in the economy.”
According to data from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the amount borrowed by the government for budgetary support from the banking system increased to Rs32.969 trillion as of November 14, compared to Rs28.26 trillion during the same period last year. In contrast, bank credit to the private sector fell to Rs9.892 trillion, down from Rs9.96 trillion last year, despite ongoing economic recovery and more favourable financial conditions.
