Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) Chairman Bilal bin Saqib emphasized that stablecoins, tokenized real-world assets (RWAs), and other blockchain-based financial products should undergo separate technical and Islamic Sharia compliance assessments instead of being grouped under a single regulatory category.
Bin Saqib made the statement following a meeting with prominent Islamic scholar Mufti Taqi Usmani. Earlier this year, Usmani and a council of scholars issued a fatwa declaring that cryptocurrencies like USDT do not qualify as Sharia-recognized forms of wealth. Consequently, any transactions using such tokens to purchase physical goods or digital services were deemed invalid under Islamic law.
In March, Pakistan enacted the Virtual Assets Act, which mandates that virtual asset service providers—including exchanges, custodians, and token issuers—must ensure their operations align with Sharia principles. Compliance oversight will be guided by a dedicated committee of Islamic finance scholars.
The country is also progressing on several blockchain initiatives, including the development of a sovereign stablecoin, the tokenization of national assets, and the establishment of a licensing framework for cryptocurrency trading platforms.