PMEX’s year of growth

Pakistan Mercantile Exchange Limited (PMEX), the country’s only licensed commodity futures exchange, concluded fiscal FY26 with strong growth across all major performance indicators, reinforcing its position as the country’s only regulated commodity futures exchange, as per a press release.

During the financial year, PMEX recorded its highest-ever total traded value of Rs11.3 trillion, up 22pc year-on-year, while trading activity surged by 87pc to 17.2 million lots. Investor participation also strengthened, with new accounts increasing by 58pc year-on-year. The exchange also achieved its highest-ever single-day traded value of Rs177 billion.

During the year, PMEX advanced the development of Pakistan’s agricultural commodity ecosystem by expanding its suite of domestic deliverable wheat, rice, maize and sugar Futures Contracts. Through awareness campaigns, roadshows and broker engagement initiatives, the exchange expanded participation among farmers, traders, processors, exporters and agribusinesses. Within weeks of launching its deliverable agricultural contracts, PMEX recorded trading of over 650 metric tons of local agricultural commodities, demonstrating encouraging market acceptance and growing interest in regulated agricultural futures.

Allied Bank’s MoU with Nust

Allied Bank, one of Pakistan’s leading commercial banks, has signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding with the National University of Sciences & Technology (Nust) to strengthen academia-industry collaboration and promote innovation in fintech, digital banking, artificial intelligence and emerging technologies, as per a press release.

Under this collaboration, Allied Bank and Nust will establish a structured platform for knowledge exchange, applied research, talent development, and innovation-led initiatives. The partnership aims to bridge the gap between academic research and practical business applications by enabling students, researchers, faculty members, and banking professionals to work together on real-world challenges and emerging opportunities in the financial services sector.

Commenting on the partnership, Allied Bank’s CIO Mujahid Ali said, “This partnership reflects Allied Bank’s commitment to shaping the future of banking through innovation, collaboration, and emerging technologies. By working with NUST, we aim to support applied research, develop future-ready talent, and explore practical solutions that can enhance digital banking and contribute to Pakistan’s evolving financial ecosystem.”

EFF for SMEs

Karandaaz Pakistan and DigiKhata Financial Services (DKFS) have signed a strategic partnership to launch an Embedded Finance Facility (EFF). This is a first-of-its-kind initiative that turns everyday merchant payments into a pathway to formal credit for Pakistan’s small retailers, as per a press release.

The model is designed to solve twin problems of the retail sector at once: low adoption of digital payments and limited access to formal financing. Pakistan’s retail and wholesale trade is a major contributor to GDP and to the country’s micro-SMEs base, yet it remains overwhelmingly cash-driven. Without a verifiable digital financial history, most merchants are effectively invisible to lenders and shut out of the credit they need to grow.

The EFF breaks that cycle with a feedback loop model: every transaction builds a merchant’s credit profile, enabling more accurate scoring and progressively larger financing as their digital footprint matures. In doing so, it transforms Raast from a payments rail into a genuine gateway for financial inclusion, and a catalyst for formalising Pakistan’s retail economy.

Yara, Sona unite

Fauji Fertiliser Company Limited (FFC) has strengthened its commitment to agricultural innovation through its strategic collaboration with Yara International ASA. Founded in Norway in 1905, Yara is one of the world’s foremost crop nutrition companies, operating and supporting farmers and industries with its fertilisers and crop nutrition solutions in over 140 countries, with a footprint on all continents, as per a press release.

As part of the strategic collaboration between FFC and Yara International, the Sona and Yara brands have entered into a co-branding arrangement to introduce a premium portfolio of advanced biological and speciality plant nutrition products in Pakistan.

Rapid population growth, climate change, and increasing environmental stresses pose serious challenges to Pakistan’s agricultural productivity and national food security. FFC’s collaboration with Yara International is a step forward to address these challenges through high-quality crop nutrition solutions tailored to Pakistan’s cropping systems and agronomic conditions.

Published in Dawn, The Business and Finance Weekly, July 13th, 2026