By Ali Imran
ISLAMABAD: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Wednesday announced that “mentally disordered persons” could open a bank account through a court-appointed manager for the first time in the country’s history.
In a press release, the central bank said a new category, “mentally disordered person account”, had been created in the SBP’s Anti-Money Laundering, Combating the Financing of Terrorism & Countering Proliferation Financing (AML/CFT/CPF) regulations.
“State Bank advised all banks to facilitate the mentally disordered persons by allowing them to open and maintain a bank account with the help of a court-appointed manager as per the applicable laws related to mental health,” the release stated.
It said the “well-defined” process for opening the account was devised after thorough discussions with stakeholders. The process includes the presentation of valid identity documents and biometric verification of the person and the court-appointed manager through the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra).
