Pakistan Digital Loan Crime: Acting after a man committed suicide after failing to repay a loan taken from a digital loan company in Pakistan, the administration has arrested 20 people and banned 50 illegal loan-giving apps.
The spokesperson of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) said on Wednesday (July 19), ‘‘ FIA has arrested 20 people involved in giving loans illegally through mobile applications. The offices of six companies involved in this activity have also been sealed.’’
FIA appeals to people
Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has appealed to people to ensure that the said company or app is registered under the Pakistan Securities Exchange Commission before taking a loan. It is notable that a man named Masood committed suicide due to blackmail by debt collectors in Rawalpindi district of Punjab province, about 350 km from Lahore.
After that FIA started investigation against the online loan app. The widow of the deceased said that her husband had taken a loan from Hamrah Financial Services and Sarmaya Microfinance Pvt Ltd’s online loan app. Subsequently her husband failed to make the payment within the given time limit, following which the loan amount got hiked.
Masood took another loan
To repay the first payment, Masood took another loan, increasing the amount payable to Rs.700,000. He then committed suicide and narrated his ordeal in an audio clip, which surfaced online. After this incident, the authorities took action. Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has also blocked around 50 loan apps that are not registered with SECP. The PTA has also referred the cases of these companies to the FIA ​​for action.
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