Overview
- Parliament has approved a new AI- and technology-driven tax administration that officials say will automate assessments, orders and tax notices and sharply reduce human discretion in taxpayer interactions.
- The Finance Ministry has issued RFPs for new international issuances, seeking arrangers for Eurobonds, Sukuk and, for the first time, dollar‑settled rupee‑linked bonds to diversify and extend external maturities.
- The government launched an SME Finance Task Force led by the State Bank of Pakistan and including the Pakistan Banks’ Association and SMEDA to push banks to scale lending to small firms and exporters.
- Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb told the Pakistan Banking Summit on Tuesday that stronger remittances and higher projected FX reserves support the push to move from stabilization toward predictable, market-friendly financing.
- The package builds on recent market re-entry — an April Eurobond and an oversubscribed $250m Panda bond in May — and follows the Tax Policy Office’s move into the Finance Division and a pledged medium‑term tax strategy.