Raast QR Codes to Track Utility Bill Payments

Islamabad, August 16, 2025, 04:53 PM PKT — The Ministry of Finance has launched a decisive push, issuing a letter to various ministries and regulatory bodies demanding an update on implementing Raast QR codes in public utility companies, kickstarting a bold move toward real-time digital tracking of utility bill payments, as per a news report. Utility companies under the Cabinet Division, Power Division, and other ministries must collaborate with banks to integrate the Raast system into billing platforms, leveraging the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) Raast Instant Payment System, a secure platform for Person-to-Government (P2G) and Person-to-Business (P2B) transactions, with dynamic QR codes embedding bill details for instant payments.

This initiative, backed by technical support from SBP and Karandaaz, aims to boost digital payments, cut operational inefficiencies, and enhance consumer experience, requiring QR codes on bills to eliminate manual reference inputs. The finance ministry underscores its role in streamlining payments and improving transparency, targeting reduced cash handling, better reconciliation, and a traceable payment system, aligning with cashless economy goals by reducing errors and late payments. Web context on digital payments shows past delays, while posts found on X reflect optimism mixed with caution—some praise innovation, others doubt rollout. Critically, the narrative of “digital progress” may mask implementation hurdles—web data hints at technical challenges, and X sentiment suggests distrust in timely execution, pointing to potential obstacles.