Govt Notifies 13-Member Committee to End Interest-Based Banking in Pakistan

To fulfill the government’s commitment to integrate Islamic banking into the economic fabric of the country by eliminating the interest-based system in the country, the government reached an understanding with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) to repeal their appeals against the Federal Shariat Court’s (FSC) order.

Further, to honor the resolution for eradication of interest, passed by Mufti Taqi Usmani at the Hurmat-e-Sood Conference held in Karachi on 30^th November 2022, the government has constituted a Steering Committee under the Patronage of Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar with the mandate to provide guidance on the legal & regulatory reforms and actions required for the implementation of Federal Shariat Court’s judgment on Riba; to suggest capacity building measures of the stakeholders for full implementation of the FSC’s decision; to monitor the progress of implementation of the FSC’s judgment; and remove the bottlenecks, if any.

The composition of the Steering Committee is as follows:

Ex-Offcio Members

1. Governor, State Bank of Pakistan (Chairman)
2. Secretary, Finance Division (Member)
3. Chairman, Securities Exchange Companies of Pakistan (Member)
4. Chairman, Pakistan Banks Association (Member)
5. Deputy Governor, FI,DFS&IT, State Bank of Pakistan (Member)

Members by Name

6. Maulana Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani, President Wifaq-ul-Madaris (Member)
7. Mufti Irshad Ahmad Aijaz, Chairman Shariah Advisory Committee SBP (Member)
8. Mansur-Ur-Rehman Khan, President & CEO, IBP & Member SAC (Member)
9. Ashfaq Tola Chairman, Pakistan Reforms and Resource Modernization Commission (Member)
10. Khozem A. Haidermota, Senior partner, Haidermota & Co (Member)
11. Saeed Ahmad, Ex-Deputy Governor, State Bank of Pakistan (Member)
12. Irfan Siddiqi, President Meezan Bank (Member)
13. Mian Muhammad Adrees, CEO, Sitara Chemical Industries (Member)

Executive Director, Islamic Banking Department, SBP will act as Secretary of the Steering Committee.