In crisis-hit Pakistan, rogue loan apps add to financial pain

A shopkeeper reads a newspaper near sacks of grains outside a shop at a wholesale market in Karachi, Pakistan. As low-income Pakistanis fall foul of unscrupulous lending apps, complaints of fraud, data abuse and blackmail alarm authorities. — Reuters

LAHORE: Unemployed Pakistani software engineer Ali thought he had found a way to pay his overdue electricity bill when he took a small, 30-day loan from a digital lending app late last year.

The money landed in his account minutes after completing the application – a big draw of the lending apps that are spreading fast among lower-income Pakistanis grappling with an economic crisis and a dearth of accessible bank loans.