KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) stated on Friday that it will return to a five-day workweek by reintroducing Saturday as a bank holiday, less than a month after the federal government raised working hours for banks and government agencies.
On April 13, the central bank said that it was boosting bank working hours in response to federal government demands by classifying Saturday, which is normally a holiday, as a working day.
Today, however, the central bank reversed that decision, declaring that banks across the nation would stay closed on Saturdays.
According to the SBP, banks will be open from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday, with breaks from 13:30 a.m. to 14:15 p.m. for prayers and lunch.
On Fridays, the banks will be open from 9:00 a.m. to 18:00 p.m., with a break from 13:30 to 14:30 p.m. for lunch and prayers.