Finance minister confirms Pakistan seeks $10 billion Exchange Stabilisation Support Facility, says talks with US Treasury underway

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has confirmed that Pakistan formally asked the United States for a $10 billion Exchange Stabilisation Support Facility, intended to reassure markets about the currency and foreign exchange position. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, he said the request went to the US Treasury Department and talks are ongoing, although no deal has been finalised yet. According to Profit, the minister stressed that the proposed arrangement is neither a conventional loan nor a credit line.

Instead, Aurangzeb explained, the facility is designed to send a signal of currency stability to global investors and help Pakistan regain access to external capital. He added that stronger confidence could make it easier to raise funds in international markets. The government wants to move away from frequent short-term bilateral rollovers and shift gradually toward market-based financing with longer tenors. Separately, officials are working with international credit rating agencies to lift the sovereign rating to at least B+.

Aurangzeb also said three arrangers have been chosen to support Pakistan's return to global bond markets, and he pointed to past instruments such as a Eurobond, an Islamic Sukuk and a bond linked to the rupee and settled in dollars. Talks with the US Export-Import Bank and the Treasury form part of the wider financing plan, with responses hoped for before the close of September.