Pakistan pushes Bitcoin and digital assets as new financial infrastructure

Pakistan is positioning Bitcoin and digital assets as the core foundation of a new financial infrastructure for its 240 million citizens, according to Bilal Bin Saqib, chairman of the Pakistan Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (PVARA), speaking at the Bitcoin MENA Conference. He emphasized that Pakistan must move beyond traditional economic models and view digital assets not as speculative tools but as essential financial infrastructure for the Global South.

Saqib — formerly a special assistant to the prime minister on blockchain and crypto — is leading efforts to transform Pakistan’s large but unregulated crypto market into a compliant, investment-ready ecosystem. With 70% of the population under age 30, he said Pakistan has both the demographic advantage and scale to build a fully regulated crypto system. He compared Pakistan to El Salvador: if a nation of 6 million can integrate Bitcoin successfully, Pakistan, with a much larger population and a rapidly expanding digital sector, can achieve even greater results.

Pakistan’s crypto market is among the world’s fastest-growing, ranking third in Chainalysis’ 2025 Global Crypto Adoption Index. In May, Saqib announced plans to establish a national Bitcoin reserve and implement more pro-crypto regulatory policies. That same month, Pakistan allocated 2,000 megawatts of surplus electricity for Bitcoin mining and AI data centers, aiming to attract foreign investment and create high-tech jobs by channeling excess energy into AI and crypto infrastructure.

By September, Pakistan had invited global crypto companies to apply for licenses under its new federal regulatory framework. PVARA called for expressions of interest from major exchanges and service providers seeking entry into the market. This move is part of a broader national strategy to integrate digital assets into the economy, marking a significant shift toward embracing crypto and blockchain as engines of future economic growth.