The Export Development Fund (EDF) and the Export-Import Bank of Pakistan (Pak-EXIM) have signed an agreement establishing an SME Risk Pool of approximately Rs.3 billion, aimed at widening small and medium enterprises’ access to export credit insurance. The agreement was signed by Chairman EDF, Mr. Omar Saeed, and President Pak-EXIM, Mr. Shahbaz Hussain Syed, and was welcomed by Federal Minister for Finance Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb as a step towards stronger domestic risk-sharing for exporters.

Under the arrangement, SME exporters will be able to obtain cover against non-payment risk, one of the main obstacles that keeps smaller firms from expanding into new markets. The Pak-EXIM President said the pool would broaden SMEs’ access to this protection. The Finance Minister stressed that Pakistan’s export ambitions depend on an integrated ecosystem in which exporters, commercial banks, EDF, Pak-EXIM, the State Bank of Pakistan and the government work together. The initiative reflects EDF’s continued commitment to export-led growth and to strengthening the competitiveness of Pakistani exporters.