The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has allowed Habib Bank Limited (HBL) to open special foreign currency accounts (SFCAs) for companies registered in the Gwadar Free Zone, according to an SBP letter, Gwadar Pro reported. Under the approval, enterprises operating in the Gwadar South Free Zone and Gwadar North Free Zone can open SFCAs with HBL, subject to terms and conditions set by the central bank.

The letter says Chinese and other foreign companies in the two zones will be exempt from the Foreign Exchange Policy Framework (FEPF) and may retain up to 50% of their foreign-currency earnings in SFCAs for trade-related payments and remittances. HBL will open each SFCA in the name of the relevant entity, with a Gwadar Free Zone identifier to distinguish it from other foreign currency accounts.

The letter bars the accounts from being funded by cash foreign-currency deposits or by foreign currency purchased in Pakistan from authorised dealers or exchange companies. If an entity does not have sufficient funds in its SFCA to make a legitimate overseas payment, the letter allows HBL to meet the shortfall by purchasing foreign exchange from the interbank market for the underlying transaction. The bank will obtain an undertaking from the entity confirming that funds are insufficient across all its SFCAs.

Entities may convert balances into Pakistani rupees at any time. However, funds converted into rupees cannot be re-credited into the SFCA. The move follows earlier steps aimed at easing foreign-exchange frictions for firms in the Gwadar Free Zones. Local media have reported that SBP exempted the zones from the FEPF in December last year, a change intended to allow direct conversion of renminbi (RMB) into Pakistani rupees without routing through the U.S. dollar.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP) — Pak-China