KARACHI: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has recovered government land worth Rs1.5 trillion, while a special task force is being constituted to resolve land-related issues in Sindh, said Shakeel Ahmed Durrani, NAB Director General for Karachi on Saturday.

In line with the demand of the Association of Builders and Developers (ABAD), he said that land should be sold through public auction.

Addressing a ceremony held at ABAD House, Mr Durrani further said that the task force of NAB and the Sindh government will soon become operational.

He emphasised that both NAB and the Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah are on board regarding land-related matters. He said a new plan has been initiated to recover government land worth Rs10tr.

According to ABAD’s press release, he said that discretionary powers related to land often become a source of corruption. A proposal is under consideration to develop public parks on the recovered lands in consultation with the Sindh government.

Task force to tackle land issues; govt eyes Rs10tr recovery

DG NAB Rawalpindi Waqar Ahmed Chauhan said that NAB closely reviews ABAD’s reports to stay informed. For the first time in the country’s history, NAB has developed an online property system.

Layout plans of 1,026 housing societies across the country have been incorporated into the system. The online property system will soon be introduced for the public, and approved layout plans of societies will continue to be added to the system, he said.

Chairman ABAD Muhammad Hassan Bakhshi said that if Pakistan’s economy is to grow, Karachi must be embraced and supported.

He said that five plots of land, including park lands, have been recovered. The Chairman NAB invited ABAD to work jointly on these lands and assured that NAB would be informed to resolve title-related issues. Once clearance is granted by NAB, the title issues will be resolved, and thereafter no NAB cases will be filed against builders, which would help restore investor confidence in Karachi.

The ABAD Chairman also announced the formation of a committee between the business community and NAB so that matters can be resolved out of court and long-pending cases can move toward resolution.

Former ABAD Chairman Mohsin Sheikhani said that government institutions associated with land matters are not working on a digitalisation formula. Even after official approval stamps from government institutions, the value and legal standing of land are not secure, and people still have to make repeated court appearances. He emphasized that once digitalisation is implemented in government institutions, 80 per cent of land-related issues would be resolved.

Published in Dawn, February 15th, 2026

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KARACHI: Dollars being sold by the exchange companies in the interbank market fell by 12 per cent in the first seven months of the current fiscal year.

This was against the inflows of remittances through the banking channel, which increased by 11.3 per cent during the same period. Apparently, more inflows are coming through banking channels, with greater facilitation by banks or better regulations and schemes introduced by the State Bank for remittances.

However, exchange companies said selling and buying dollars in the open market is becoming difficult due to strict vigilance and restrictions. This was the reason exchange companies are getting less from people willing to sell their dollars. At the same time, buying dollars from exchange companies is more difficult.

“Despite strict rules and regulations for dollar trading, investments in cryptocurrencies have increased this year,” said a currency dealer, adding that no one knows the volume of investment in cryptocurrencies. Earlier, exchange companies estimated an investment of $800 to $1,000 million in cryptocurrencies.

Strict regulations, crypto investments blamed for decline

Data from the Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan showed that companies sold a total of $1.692bn to banks during July-January 2025-26. It was 12pc less than the amount sold in the same market during this period last year, which was around $1.921bn.

In January, the companies sold a total of $309m, up from $260m in the same month last year. A number of companies are facing pressure to merge with bigger companies, as the State Bank is willing to reduce the number of companies. At the same time, the banks are being encouraged to open their own exchange companies. This move was intended to handle fewer companies more easily and to stop money laundering and dollar smuggling.

However, market sources said cryptocurrencies are offering much higher rates against the dollar, which may attract remitters to obtain local currency and sell dollars outside Pakistan, such as in Dubai.

Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan Chairman Malik Bostan said higher inflows in Ramazan will boost dollar sales in the banking market. He said that, usually, inflows increase by up to 20 per cent in Ramazan; both remittances through banks and exchange companies are expected to increase.

Published in Dawn, February 15th, 2026

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• DHA, Clifton residential plots up 25-50pc; commercial plots surge 25-75pc
• Industrial investment in Karachi remains weak; investors shifting to Nooriabad, Jhampir

KARACHI: Property prices in Karachi have increased over the past two years, but the gains have lagged behind the unexpected returns in equities and gold.

Investors have been drawn to bullion amid global uncertainty, including market swings linked to US President Donald Trump’s shifting stance on tariffs and threats of military action against various countries.

Pakistan’s stock market has also posted strong gains over the past two years, repeatedly setting new highs amid political and economic developments, lower interest rates and investor reluctance to hold US dollars.

One tola gold on Jan 1, 2024, was available at Rs219,700 as compared to the current price of Rs526,962 on Saturday, reversing from a record peak of Rs572,862 on Jan 29, 2026.

On Feb 13, the KSE-100 Index closed at 179,603.73 points, almost three times higher than its level of 64,661.78 points on Jan 1, 2024.

Muhammad Shafi Jhakvani, vice president of the Defence and Clifton Association of Real Estate Agents (DEFCLAREA), said the prices of DHA and Clifton residential plots have increased by 25-50 per cent in different blocks and phases in the last two years followed by 25-75pc in commercial plots.

Apartment prices have risen by 10-40pc. For example, the price of a three-bedroom apartment in a good vicinity of Clifton like Bath Island and Civil Lines, which was available at Rs 55-60 million in 2023-24, have now touched Rs75-80m and even higher in some projects.

Similarly in DHA, the 1,500 square feet apartment’s price was Rs20,000 per sq ft (Rs30-32m), and is now around Rs28,000-30,000 per sq ft (Rs40-45m).

The prices of 500- and 1000-square-yard bungalows have also gone up by 10-25pc. Normally in Pakistan and in Karachi, rental returns are 0.25pc per month and 3-4pc per annum. In residential properties, it also increases according to price hike and in some smaller units, it rises more than that because of shortage of rental inventories, he said.

“Bungalow rent also soars according to rising prices but portions are in high demand because of again shortage of inventory,” Mr Shafi said.

He said investors are active in Clifton commercial plots as big plots and prices have become costlier drastically in the last two years. In DHA Phase 8, the price has surged as investors have been very active since 2024.

He expected new benchmarks in 2026, particularly in Phase 8 for both residential and commercial properties.

Abdul Wahab Parekh, owner of Parekh Estate, said new 500-yard and 1,000-yard bungalows were increasingly being built as ground-plus-one units, often with swimming pools in the basement. A 500-yard ground-plus-one bungalow now costs Rs100-250m, depending on location, compared with Rs80-160m two years ago.

A 1,000-yard ground-plus-one bungalow in DHA cost Rs130-450m, depending on the phase, compared with Rs110-350m two years ago, he said. Flat prices in various DHA phases were now around Rs20,000-35,000 per square foot compared to Rs15,000-20,000 two years ago.

In Clifton, he said, a three-bedroom apartment (old or new) cost Rs25-50m, compared with Rs20-40m previously.

Mr Parekh said commercial plot prices had also increased. In PECHS and on Sharea Faisal (left side towards the airport), commercial plots were priced at Rs1.5-2m per square yard, compared with Rs1-1.2m earlier. On the right side, they ranged from Rs1m to Rs1.5m compared to Rs700,000 to Rs1.2m.

On Shaheed-i-Millat Road, he said, commercial plots were around Rs1.5m per square yard, up from Rs800,000 to Rs1m two years ago. He described I.I. Chundrigar Road as a slow market, with rates pegged at Rs400,000 per square foot.

On the industrial side, Mr Parekh said no major new investment had arrived in Karachi in the last 50 years, with many owners dividing premises and land for non-industrial uses.

Investors were shifting towards Nooriabad and Jhampir due to lower rates, he said, adding that 60-70pc of land along the Super Highway was “risky and controversial”.

Mohammad Najeeb, a member of the Supreme Council of the North Nazimabad Association of Real Estate Agents (NNAREA), said the price of a 240-yard ground-plus-one house had remained more or less unchanged at Rs55-65m over the past two years, while a 400-yard ground-plus-one bungalow had risen to Rs60-70m from Rs45-50m.

He said 600-yard ground-plus-one bungalows remained in the Rs70-100m range, while 1,000-yard ground-plus-one bungalows cost Rs180-200m, up from Rs140-150m two years ago.

In North Nazimabad, he said, an old two-bedroom flat without a lift, generator or parking cost Rs5-7m. New flats with facilities were priced at Rs15-17.5m, up from just over Rs10m.

Old three-bedroom flats were priced at Rs10-12.5m, up from Rs8-9m, while new three-bedroom units with facilities were priced at Rs17.5-35m, compared with Rs15-20m two years ago.

Published in Dawn, February 15th, 2026

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