On July 8, the Pakistani government announced the establishment of the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, an independent body responsible for licensing, monitoring, and supervising virtual asset service providers (VASPs).
Its composition includes key institutional stakeholders such as the Chairman of the Pakistan Securities and Exchange Commission, the Governor of the National Bank, and the Federal Secretaries of Law and Information Technology, ensuring a comprehensive 'whole-of-government' approach to digital asset regulation.
Further demonstrating its commitment, the government announced the establishment of Pakistan's first strategic Bitcoin reserve at the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas on May 28. This sovereign reserve aims to hold Bitcoin for the long-term benefit of national interests and macroeconomic resilience.
The Pakistani government has allocated 2,000 megawatts of surplus electricity specifically for Bitcoin mining and artificial intelligence (AI) data centers. This move leverages Pakistan's untapped energy potential to drive the future of digital finance and computing. The Ministry of Finance stated that strategic partnerships are currently being formed to ensure that this high-energy-consuming blockchain infrastructure is both sustainable and revenue-generating.
Industry insiders point out that the country has over 40 million cryptocurrency users, with an estimated annual transaction volume of $300 billion. Although previous regulations were unclear, the youth in Pakistan has shown early and enthusiastic acceptance of blockchain technology, with over 70% of the population being under 30, making Pakistan distinctive in the global digital asset landscape.
