SBP refuses to name $3bn loan beneficiaries

Reluctant to publicly disclose the names of the 620 beneficiaries who received a $3 billion ‘soft loan’ disbursed by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government during the Covid-19 pandemic, the governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said that he would prefer to share details with the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in an in-camera meeting. The PAC, which convened on Wednesday, was informed that SBP had executed the soft loan scheme through commercial banks and that revealing the details of the beneficiaries would breach the confidentiality agreement between the banks and their clients . These arguments did not sit well with MNA Barjees Tahir, who said: “Just tell us the names of these 620 people.” The PAC took up the issue of the loans during the PTI regime for the second consecutive time on Wednesday, insisting that public funds were used for the loans and the names of the beneficiaries must be disclosed. On Tuesday, the PAC instructed a joint investigation by the FIA, NAB, Auditor General of Pakistan, and Military Intelligence into the matter.