KARACHI: Pakistan is planning to issue fresh Eurobonds and Sukuk, along with its first dollar-settled, rupee-linked bonds, as it aims to extend the maturity profile of its external debt, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said on Tuesday.
Pakistan returned to global capital markets after a four-year hiatus, successfully placing a Eurobond in April 2026. Due to strong investor demand, the government exercised the greenshoe option, increasing the issue size to $750 million. This was followed in May 2026 by the country’s inaugural Panda bond, worth $250 million, which was oversubscribed five times and achieved a record-low borrowing cost for a three-year issue.
“We have just issued RFPs (request for proposals) for Sukuk, Eurobonds, and, for the first time, dollar-settled rupee-linked bonds,” Aurangzeb said at the Pakistan Banking Summit 2026.
“Because we do want to go back into the international capital market and extend the maturities of our international debt as we move forward,” he said.
“From my perspective, many of these are going to be replacement instruments. These are not going to be incremental debt. How we replace some of the earlier debt will be part of the picture as we move forward,” he added.
He said the government closed the last fiscal year on a strong note across all metrics, starting with the fiscal side: a primary surplus, an all-time low fiscal deficit, and a debt-to-GDP ratio well below 70 percent. The GDP growth closed at 3.7 percent on the back of a strong rebound in large-scale manufacturing.
The current account performance remains strong, supported by record remittance flows, he said. “However, we expect our overall remittances this year to close somewhere between $41 and $42 billion.”
He noted that there has been a decline in exports, but that decline is concentrated mainly on the food side. Value-added exports, especially in textiles, have continued to register year-on-year growth.
The minister disclosed that he formed a task force to ensure SMEs gain access to the required bank financing. The task force will be led by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) with senior representation from the Pakistan Banks’ Association (PBA), the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA), chambers of commerce and industry, and the Ministry of Finance.
Zafar Masud, Chairman of PBA, highlighted the banking sector’s progress in expanding priority-sector financing, accelerating digital transformation, and advancing financial inclusion. He emphasised that sustained collaboration between the banking industry, policymakers, and the regulator will be critical to building a resilient, inclusive, and future-ready financial system that supports Pakistan’s long-term economic growth.
Bilal Azhar Kayani, Minister of State for Finance & Railways and Head of the Prime Minister’s Delivery Unit, underscored the government’s roadmap for advancing a cashless Pakistan, emphasising the role of digital payments, technology, and coordinated public-private action in accelerating financial inclusion, improving economic documentation, and driving long-term economic growth. Saleem Ullah, Deputy Governor, State Bank of Pakistan, outlined SBP’s vision for expanding access to finance for SMEs and strengthening the sector’s role in driving inclusive and sustainable economic growth.
