ISLAMABAD: In a daring transfer to experience the crypto wave, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday named UK-based entrepreneur Bilal bin Saqib as his special assistant on Blockchain and Cryptocurrency – a daring step towards placing Pakistan on the crypto map.
The Prime Minister’s Workplace issued a notification confirming that Saqib, a UK-based entrepreneur with expertise in expertise and philanthropy, has been appointed with the standing of minister of state. Saqib will lead efforts to formulate a nationwide technique for digital belongings, together with drafting cryptocurrency laws, establishing Bitcoin mining operations, and integrating Blockchain expertise into sectors corresponding to land information and public finance.
He presently serves as Chief Govt Officer of the Pakistan Crypto Council and was just lately appointed Chief Advisor to Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb. His new position is anticipated to speed up Pakistan’s entry into the digital asset house.
Field Marshal Asim Munir meets Pakistan Crypto Council CEO Bilal Bin Saqib
The appointment follows a significant coverage announcement on Sunday, by which the federal government allotted 2,000 megawatts of electrical energy for Bitcoin mining and synthetic intelligence information centres.
In parallel, the Finance Ministry launched the Pakistan Digital Belongings Authority (PDAA), a brand new regulatory physique tasked with making a authorized framework for cryptocurrencies, supervising asset tokenization, and formalizing Pakistan’s estimated $300 billion casual crypto market. Officers stated the PDAA would play a central position in creating Pakistan’s Fintech sector by attracting funding, using surplus power, and selling innovation among the many nation’s youth, who make up practically 70% of the inhabitants.
Pakistan already has one of many highest cryptocurrency adoption charges on the earth, with over 50 million customers, and Saqib’s appointment might convey construction and legitimacy to the quickly rising sector.
An alumnus of the London Faculty of Economics, Saqib gained prominence throughout the COVID-19 pandemic via his “One Million Meals” marketing campaign within the UK, which delivered over 100,000 meals to Nationwide Well being Service staff and weak teams. The initiative earned him an MBE from King Charles III and commendation from Queen Elizabeth II and the Mayor of London. In Pakistan, he co-founded Tayaba, a social enterprise that launched the H2O Wheel, a instrument designed to ease water assortment in rural communities.
Saqib is anticipated to play a key position in advancing Pakistan’s digital asset agenda, as the federal government strikes to place itself as a participant within the international crypto financial system.
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