BankIslami Introduces aikTijarat for Shariah-Compliant Digital Merchant Payments

BankIslami’s digital banking platform, aik, has launched aikTijarat, a dedicated merchant and business application designed for shopkeepers, traders, retailers and service providers across Pakistan. The bank is presenting the platform as Pakistan’s first Shariah-compliant merchant app, giving businesses a separate digital environment for collecting payments, managing funds and handling everyday financial activity.

The formal launch was announced on September 9, 2026. Unlike a normal consumer banking app, aikTijarat is built specifically around business use. Merchants can open a Shariah-compliant business account without visiting a branch, using CNIC details and biometric verification. Existing BankIslami and aik customers are offered a shorter onboarding route instead of completing the full registration process again. 

Raast QR Payments at the Centre

A key feature of aikTijarat is digital payment collection through Raast, Pakistan’s instant payment system. According to the launch announcement, merchants can generate static and dynamic QR codes and receive customer payments directly.

The app also allows businesses to pay suppliers and utility bills from their business balance and maintain transaction records with shareable digital receipts. 

The official Google Play listing for aik Tijarat confirms several additional functions. Users can make IBFT transfers to bank accounts and mobile wallets in Pakistan, pay electricity, gas, internet, water and other utility bills, generate dynamic QR codes, monitor cash flow, track daily sales and review transaction history through a real-time dashboard. The listing also states that business data and transactions are encrypted during transmission. 

Designed Specifically for Pakistani Merchants

Ashfaque Ahmed, Chief Officer of aik Digital, said the product is aimed at merchants who have often remained outside the centre of the digital banking conversation despite playing an important role in Pakistan’s economy.

According to the company, aikTijarat is intended to contribute to Pakistan’s broader push toward digital payments by helping digitise merchant transactions while maintaining a Shariah-compliant banking model.

The launch also aligns with Pakistan’s national cashless-economy programme. Official government figures released in July 2026 showed that active merchants accepting digital payments had increased from around 500,000 to more than two million within a year. Annual digital transactions increased from 6.9 billion to 11.3 billion during the same period. 

The State Bank of Pakistan has also directed regulated financial institutions to promote Raast Person-to-Merchant payments and enable eligible merchants to accept digital payments through Raast QR codes. 

More Than Just a Payment App

Ghuffran Abbasi, Chief Business Officer at aik, said aikTijarat is intended to develop beyond basic payment acceptance and become a wider digital business platform.

BankIslami says future phases are expected to bring merchant financing and additional business-growth tools to the platform. However, these services remain part of its announced roadmap, and detailed eligibility conditions or launch dates have not yet been disclosed. 

For smaller businesses, aikTijarat’s practical advantage could be bringing payment collection, transfers, utility bills, sales tracking and transaction records together in a single mobile platform. This could make it easier for merchants to move away from cash-only operations and maintain clearer digital financial records.

A Step Toward Digital Islamic Banking

BankIslami has been expanding its broader aik digital ecosystem since launching aik as a digital Islamic banking platform. Its existing services include digital accounts, fund transfers, bill payments and Raast functionality. 

With aikTijarat, the bank is now extending that strategy directly to businesses and merchants. The launch comes as Pakistan accelerates adoption of QR payments, Raast and digitally documented transactions, placing merchant-focused financial platforms at the centre of the country’s transition toward a more cashless economy.

(BankIslami) (State Bank of Pakistan)