Islamabad: Pakistan's Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan (Ecap) on Monday revealed that the country has been facing a large-scale outflow of US dollars to Afghanistan ever since the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul last year, media reports said.

Addressing a presser, Ecap Chairman Malik Bostan was quoted as saying by Dawn News that this situation had eroded Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves.

The exchange rate has been destroyed by smuggling and fake imports of dollars as well as Islamabad’s negligence towards the issue, he alleged.

The Ecap chairman pointed out that when the Taliban took over Kabul, one greenback was available for Rs155 and Pakistan’s reserves stood at USD 22 billion.

Now the reserves have sunk to their lowest level in about eight years with a dollar selling for Rs225 in the inter-bank market. This unhindered flow of the American currency towards Afghanistan has created a crisis for Pakistan, he added.