The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has rolled out a new regulatory framework designed to make Pakistan’s financial sector fairer, more transparent, and consumer-focused. The new initiative, titled the “Business Conduct and Fair Treatment of Consumers Regulatory Framework (BC&FRF),” aims to ensure that banks and financial institutions treat customers with integrity, transparency, and accountability at every stage of their engagement.
By embedding fairness, ethical conduct, and data protection into financial operations, the framework seeks to build public trust, improve service standards, and create a more resilient and inclusive financial ecosystem. It is meant to safeguard consumer rights while strengthening institutional governance within Pakistan’s banking and payments landscape.
The BC&FRF aligns with the SBP’s Vision 2028 and its strategic goal of enhancing market conduct and consumer protection. It has been finalized after an extensive consultation process involving stakeholders from both the demand side (consumers) and supply side (banks, DFIs, EMIs, PSOs, and PSPs).
The framework introduces a combination of principles-based and rule-based obligations, depending on the institution’s nature and scope of operations. It covers the entire financial product lifecycle, from product design and pre-sale disclosure to service delivery, complaint handling, and relationship termination, ensuring that consumers are treated fairly throughout their interactions with banks and other financial institutions.
Divided into two main parts, the BC&FRF outlines outcome-based general principles in Part I and six key pillars in Part II:
- Governance and Oversight – Defining institutional leadership roles in promoting fair conduct.
- Disclosure and Transparency – Guaranteeing timely and accurate information for informed consumer decisions.
- Fair Treatment and Business Conduct – Encouraging equitable, inclusive, and non-discriminatory practices.
- Data Protection and Privacy – Setting standards for safeguarding consumer information.
- Dispute Resolution Mechanism – Providing accessible and efficient channels for resolving complaints.
- Awareness and Capacity Building – Focusing on institutional readiness and consumer education.
Nothing new in it , merged all the circulars from 2014 till date..
This is just a bragging attempt by SBP. It is my personal experience that the State Bank’s consumers protection department doesn’t take any action against commercial banks even on a written complaint.
They should privatise the national bank or change the attitude of staff, a mere circular is not sufficient.
Pakistani banks are the must insular business establishments today. They earn huge profits risk-free by lending to the government — thanks to budget deficits. They have no interest whatsoever in serving the common man.