Bitcoin, blockchain should form Pakistan’s new financial rail, minister says

The remarks signal Pakistan’s push to turn its grassroots crypto activity into a compliant, innovation-driven sector anchored by Bitcoin and digital-asset regulation.

Pakistan sees Bitcoin and digital assets as the backbone of a new financial rail for its 240 million citizens, a senior official said at the Bitcoin MENA Conference, signaling a shift toward formal regulation of crypto markets.

Bilal Bin Saqib said on Tuesday that Pakistan can no longer rely on traditional economic models, but needs “a new engine,” citing digital assets. The minister said during a roundtable in Abu Dhabi:

Saqib, the chairman of Pakistan’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (PVARA) and former special assistant to the prime minister on blockchain and crypto, said his mandate is to transform one of the world’s largest unregulated crypto markets into a compliant, investment-ready ecosystem.

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