92pc of retail transactions are digital: State Bank

Digital channels handled 92 per cent of retail payments made through formal banking channels in fiscal 2025-26, according to the State Bank's annual Payment Systems report, up from 88 per cent a year earlier. Dawn reported that the release came on Tuesday. Of the 14.3 billion transactions recorded through banks, 13.2 billion took place on digital platforms, a year-on-year rise of 65pc.

Mobile phone solutions drove most of the shift, with over 11.1 billion transactions, up 79pc, while internet banking portals processed 300 million transactions, rising 15pc. The report linked the growth to people increasingly using banking apps, internet portals and e-money wallets for daily spending. Retail payment volume through formal channels rose 58pc, and value grew 10pc to Rs673 trillion.

Merchant acceptance also widened, with the point-of-sale network reaching 337,791 terminals at 295,367 outlets and supporting close to 1.5 million card payments each day, up from one million the year before. Account-based online payments made up 96pc of e-commerce transactions through banks. Branchless banking app users reached 99.1 million, while bank app users climbed to 30.4 million, pointing to a shift of everyday banking onto smartphones. The report also flagged PRISM+, introduced last August, which moved the RTGS platform onto ISO-20022 messaging.