Pakistan has passed the Virtual Assets Act 2026, with the Senate approving it on February 27, the National Assembly on March 3, and President Asif Ali Zardari signing it into immediate effect. This creates the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) with full power to license, regulate, and supervise exchanges, custodians, brokers, and token issuers nationwide, enforcing compliance and market conduct standards.
Binance and HTX received No Objection Certificates to begin AML registration (local subsidiaries needed for full licenses); unlicensed activity risks 5 years in jail or Rs. 50M fines, plus bans on manipulation/insider trading and FATF-aligned AML/CTF rules.
It includes a Shariah Advisory Committee for Islamic compliance. The government is also pursuing a Bitcoin reserve, allocating 2,000 MW surplus power for mining/AI data centers, and inked an MOU with Trump-linked World Liberty Financial for stablecoin cross-border payments.
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