KARACHI: State Bank on Wednesday issued Electronic Fund Transfers (EFT) Regulations to set forth the minimum information of originator and beneficiary to be required in a payment system message being used to initiate EFT.

Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) enables customers to access their bank accounts electronically for fund transfers using different channels like ATMs, internet and mobile banking, etc.

The purpose of these regulations is to promote EFTs in the country, ensure consumer protection and payment transparency by standardising EFT and setting uniform regulations, policy and procedures, applicable to Authorised Financial Institutions (AFIs), Payment System Operators (PSOs) and Payment Service Providers (PSPs) operating in Pakistan.

These regulations highlight the originator, PSO operator or PSP and beneficiary responsibilities, Preauthorised Transfers, Compensation Policy for unauthorised and delayed EFT.

However, EFTs used for customer to merchant payments for the purchase of goods and services will not come under the purview of these regulations.

These regulations will be applicable to domestic EFTs, being offered by AFIs or PSOs which are initiated through alternative delivery channels (ADCs) such as POS (Point of Sale) terminals, ATMs, mobile banking, internet banking, call centre banking, branchless banking platforms and any other channel as and when approved by SBP.

The AFIs were told by the central bank to activate EFT services for only those payment instruments and channels against which consumer’s consent has been obtained. The consent from existing consumers should also be obtained for the purpose of regularisation

The SBP said the Originator’s AFIs (Originator is the Person who initiates the EFT) will have effective systems to identify suspicious EFT transactions.

The beneficiary’s AFIs will reverse the EFT immediately in case beneficiary notifies the bank about the incorrect credit in his or her account and put in place effective systems to identify suspicious EFT transactions.

Published in Dawn, May 10th, 2018