KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan, through its subsidiary the SBP Banking Services Corporation, has again launched its SMS service (8877) for issuance of fresh currency notes to the public.

The fresh currency notes will be available from designated commercial bank branches called “e-branches” and the 16 field offices of SBP-BSC. The booking of the service shall commence on May 19, while issuance of fresh currency notes through mobile SMS service will start on May 20 and will continue till May 31, said an SBP press release on Friday.

The service will be provided through 1,702 e-branches and 16 SBP-BSC offices in 142 cities across Pakistan to ensure maximum geographical coverage. The charge for the service is Rs1.5 plus tax per SMS.

The branch IDs of designated e-branches are available at the SBP’s website (http://www.sbp.org.pk), PBA’s website (http://www.pakistanbanks.org), and the websites of commercial banks. The branch ID for e-branch is different from the existing branch/SWIFT code of banks. Under this facility, a person may send an SMS comprising his/her 13-digit CNIC/Smart card number along with the desired e-branch ID [e.g. 32453-3454432-1(space) KHI001] to short code 8877. In return, the person will receive an SMS containing redemption code, e-branch address and the code validity period.

Published in Dawn, May 18th, 2019