Pakistan Mortgage Refinance Company (PMRC) was set up as a mortgage liquidity facility by the government of Pakistan, the State Bank of Pakistan and the World Bank to address the long-term funding constraint in the banking sector which was hindering the growth of the primary mortgage market. PMRC will serve as a secure source of long-term funding at attractive rates and at the same time ensuring sound lending habits among the primary mortgage lenders (PMLs). Its thrust is three-pronged: help reduce maturity mismatch risk for PMLs, increase the availability of fixed rate mortgages and increase the maturity structure of mortgage loans; this in turn would not only help improve the affordability of mortgages but also increase the number of qualifying borrowers. With these initiatives, PMRC envisions an expansion of the primary mortgage market, which will consequently lead to the ultimate goal: a more widespread home ownership.
PMRC will play a key role in providing funding to both conventional and Islamic PMLs and it will endeavor to encourage and collaborate with PMLs for the growth of housing finance in Pakistan. As the company’s principal source of funding will be from the local bond market, another important objective of the company is to pioneer the development of the local bond and Sukuk markets.