As the world races towards digitized banking, the newly formed Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC) attempts to position Pakistan towards the mining revolution. This move shows the government’s recognition of the transformative powers of crypto; however, deeper challenges seem to derive. Jafer Ali Shariff wonders if the council will be successful. The council’s roadmap needs to be analyzed in the context of the unique socio-economic landscape of Pakistan.
Key objectives
The PCC was created with the hopes of providing Pakistan with a devoted body that would be able to create a regulatory framework pertaining to the supervision of blockchain technologies and position Pakistan as a leader in Web3 innovation.
Regulatory Oversight
Some of the other objectives include creating policies that foster the legitimization of crypto trading, curbing scams, and compliance with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) guidelines on anti-money laundering (AML).
Infrastructure Modernization
This involves the use of blockchain in the increase in the remittances and the real estate sectors, as well as in agriculture, so as to improve transparency and efficiency.
Attracting Investment
Additionally, the Council plans to focus on foreign investment by advertising the country’s purported 20 million crypto users and the young, tech-enthusiastic population.
Legacy Issues
As set forth in the goals, it looks like the PCC has a concrete battle to face. It inherits a legacy of chronic distrust from previous regulatory whipsaws like the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) crypto ban in 2022.
Administrative Restrictions
As supposedly required, the Council is trying to balance thawing visions with Pakistan’s administrators’ customary bureaucratic sluggishness and gaping institutional lack, which slows down action.
Appointment of Advisors
Described Zhao’s strategic advisor role as the reason for PCC’s creation as a “double-edged sword.” Zhao bringing his knowledge of scaling Binance draws acute focus to the initiative and is beneficial for PR.
Concerns from the Advisor
His legal issues (WSJ April 2024: resigned Binance CEO after pleading guilty to US AML charges, served 4 months in prison) might limit the PCC’s image from being serious about regulatory supervision. Critics say that governance accountability is thrown out the window for the sake of ‘star power’ and, in some cases, ‘star shine.’
Regulatory Obstacles
Trust is a major concern since we reported Pakistan as having “perpetually walked the FATF tightrope,” meaning one wrong step will be costly. Governance accountability is equally important. The Council needs all its constituents, like the SECP and SBP, to work together, which can be described as quite challenging and “no small feat.”
Remittance Opportunity
If the Council does achieve this, opportunities are endless. The remittance industry “is ripe for a revolution.” According to SBP, over $30 billion was reported in remitted funds in 2024. Adoption of crypto can significantly decrease cost and time while providing transparency and reliability. Strong methods to send money will be welcomed by the large freelancer population.
DeFi & Tokenization
DeFi could liberate a large portion of the unbanked population. While requiring some technological upskilling, daily banking can be scaled with peer-to-peer lending/staking. The tokenization of state assets is under consideration, and while it could potentially improve liquidity, it needs to be thoroughly audited first.
Infrastructure Barriers
The most difficult problem is addressing gaps within the structure. Issues consist of internet penetration gaps (>130 million people, >54% population DataReportal 2024). Countering internet shutoff and throttling is critical. Cybersecurity is elusive yet critical because of the reported cyberattacks. Legacy infrastructure (Raast, Banking) needs urgent adherence to interoperability standards.
Industry & Collaboration
The Council also needs to onboard local start-ups as integrated advocates. Locally, strong technical brains must be welcomed to sit beside the traditional experts. Global partners are equally important, for instance, unlocking the UAE-Pakistan corridor.
Final Outlook
Achieving PCC objectives requires translating aspirations into actionable and inclusive policy frameworks. The crypto shift in Pakistan is a revolution culturally. Setting forth as the route will make Pakistan raise the infrastructure focus; local and global relations enable Pakistan to become a bridge. Does Pakistan want to be a pioneer or a cautionary tale? Direct engagement with the challenges will provide the answers.
