Senate Panel Slams Banks Over SMS Charges, Seeks SBP Action

The Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue on Tuesday strongly criticized commercial banks for charging customers additional charges for SMS alerts and other basic services, recommending that such charges be immediately discontinued.

The committee, chaired by Senator Saleem Mandviwalla, directed the Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to take urgent notice of the matter and brief the committee at its next meeting.

Senate Panel Slams Banks Over SMS Charges, Seeks SBP Action

Senator Mandviwalla observed that banks are collectively charging customers hundreds of millions of rupees for SMS alert services without obtaining clear and informed consent. He also questioned the legality and transparency of the practice, noting that customers are often unaware they are being billed for these services.

Members of the committee expressed concern over the lack of clarity surrounding customer consent, terming the practice exploitative. They maintained that essential banking alerts should not be treated as optional, profit-generating services.

Responding to the concerns, the SBP Governor informed the committee that banks do not charge customers for mandatory SMS alerts, adding that fees are applied only to voluntary SMS services for which consent is obtained. He acknowledged, however, that the service is not a source of profit for banks.

Unconvinced, the committee directed the SBP to review how SMS charges are reflected in banks’ balance sheets, stressing that the scale of revenue generated runs into hundreds of millions of rupees and warrants regulatory scrutiny.

The committee reiterated that customer protection must take precedence over profit-making and urged the central bank to ensure transparency and fair practices across the banking sector. The committee chairman also said that they can call Telcos to reconcile the charges.

See Also: SBP Kicks off Implementation of WE-Finance Code to Empower Women Entrepreneurs