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The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) announced its second Regulatory Sandbox cohort on October 2, 2026. The reported themes are AI in financial services, payment innovation, technology-enabled inward remittances and an open theme called NextGen Financial Services. The reported application deadline is November 30, 2026, but applicants should confirm the submission address and full requirements in SBP’s current official materials before applying.
What the second SBP sandbox cohort covers
An Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) report carried by UrduPoint, attributing the details to an SBP statement, names four themes. The report says proposals must fall within the specified themes to be considered.
- AI in Financial Services: financial-service proposals that use artificial intelligence. The theme does not mean every AI project automatically qualifies.
- Innovations in Payments: proposals introducing innovations in payment services.
- Technology-enabled Inward Remittances: solutions using technology to support money sent into Pakistan from abroad.
- NextGen Financial Services: the open theme for proposals that do not fit the other named areas but address a future-oriented financial-service opportunity.
These are the theme names reported by APP; applicants should check the exact wording, definitions and eligibility boundaries in SBP’s October 2 report of the announcement and the current official application materials. SBP’s website lists a second-cohort announcement dated October 2, 2026, on its Annual Payment Systems Review FY25 page.
Deadline and how to apply
APP reports that applications are due by November 30, 2026, and are to be submitted by email. The accessible report does not establish the submission address. Before sending an application, use SBP’s current official guidelines and application materials to confirm the correct email, required documents, eligibility criteria and submission instructions.
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The available announcement details do not establish cohort-specific scoring weights, testing limits or regulatory relief. An applicant should therefore avoid assuming that submitting a proposal—or fitting a theme—guarantees selection or permission to operate.
What a regulatory sandbox does—and does not do
SBP describes its Regulatory Sandbox as a supervised setting for testing proposed products, services or business models under an agreed testing plan. Its Innovation programme page characterizes the environment as controlled, with regulatory guidance and appropriate safeguards before a service goes fully to market.
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SBP’s May 2025 Regulatory Sandbox Guidelines define it as a “live testing environment for innovative products, services or business models, pursuant to a specific testing plan, which usually includes some degree of regulatory lenience combined with certain safeguards.” In practice, this is not blanket regulatory permission, a permanent exemption or authorization for unrestricted commercial launch. Any testing conditions and regulatory relief depend on SBP’s approval.
How to assess whether a proposal fits
Before preparing an application, an organization can use these checks to decide whether its proposal is a plausible match. They do not replace SBP’s official eligibility rules.
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- Identify the closest theme. Explain how the proposal maps to one of the four reported themes, rather than relying on a broad claim that it involves technology or AI.
- State the regulatory question. Describe the specific regulatory barrier or uncertainty the proposed test would address and why it needs a sandbox setting.
- Set out safeguards. Identify potential consumer-protection and financial-stability risks and the controls the test would use to manage them.
- Check readiness against SBP’s materials. Confirm eligibility, documentation, testing-plan expectations and submission instructions in the current official guidelines and application materials.
- Submit by the verified deadline and address. APP reports November 30, 2026, as the deadline and email as the submission method; verify the exact address with SBP before sending.
How this cohort relates to the first cohort
SBP’s January 6, 2026 first-cohort shortlist release named six applicants across technology-enabled inward remittances, open banking and remote merchant onboarding: Neem Exponential Financial Services Private Ltd, Digi Khata (SMC-Private) Limited, Swich Retail Private Limited, The Bank of Punjab, Barq Fintech (Pvt) Ltd, and Taptap Send UK Limited with United Bank Limited. SBP said shortlisted participants would test solutions in a controlled live environment for up to six months, subject to conditions specified at approval.
Separately, APP’s October 2 report of an SBP statement says the first cohort concluded in June 2026, with four solutions demonstrated in open banking and technology-enabled inward remittances. That completion account is attributed to APP’s report; it is distinct from the January shortlist announcement.
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The Raast Technical Sandbox is a separate initiative
SBP’s Innovation Hub describes the Raast Technical Sandbox as being in the design phase. It is intended as a dedicated technical environment for ecosystem participants to integrate with Raast and explore payment features. It is not the second Regulatory Sandbox cohort, and the page does not establish that the Raast environment is open or operational.
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