Pakistan Military Chief Asim Munir with PCC CEO Bilal Bin Saqib (Picture credit score: X/@cryptocouncilpk)
Money-strapped neighbour Pakistan is now betting massive on crypto because it introduced the institution of its first government-backed Strategic Bitcoin reserve on Wednesday. Pakistan Crypto Council CEO Bilal Bin Saqib made the announcement on the Bitcoin Vegas 2025 convention in Las Vegas, which was attended by US Vice President JD Vance and the sons of President Donald Trump, Eric and Donald Trump Jr.
“Pakistan is now not outlined by its previous. It’s being reborn as a forward-looking hub of digital innovation — powered by its youth, sharpened by necessity, and led by a new era of tech statesmen,” Saqib was quoted as saying in a assertion issued by his workplace.
Saqib was just lately appointed Particular Assistant to the Prime Minister for Crypto and Blockchain.
Nevertheless, Pakistan’s newfound liking for crypto has greater than what meets the attention. The nation that has been relying on international help is betting massive within the new phase because it additionally has a hyperlink to Trump’s household.
Pakistan Bets on Crypto, Trump-Linked Agency Joins the Recreation
In a daring however controversial pivot, Pakistan has partnered with World Liberty Monetary (WLF), a US-based agency reportedly tied to the household of Trump, to develop blockchain instruments, tokenise nationwide belongings, and obtain strategic steerage on its rising crypto ecosystem. The announcement, made in late April, has drawn world consideration, but additionally criticism, particularly given the deal’s imprecise phrases and timing.
Crypto adoption is already booming in Pakistan, with almost 20 million customers, dwarfing the nation’s 420,000 registered capital market buyers, inserting it among the many prime 10 world crypto-trading nations. The federal government now seeks to manage, tax, and legitimise this huge shadow economic system by forming the Pakistan Digital Asset Authority (PDAA).
Notably, WLF’s stakeholders embrace Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., together with their brother-in-law, Jared Kushner.
Including to the controversy, Texas-based logistics agency Fr8Tech, additionally linked to World Liberty Finance, pledged $20 million to buy Trump’s personal cryptocurrency, $TRUMP, whereas providing to assist Pakistan develop blockchain instruments and advisory frameworks. The optics of a financially struggling nation receiving assist from a agency investing in a partisan political token have raised eyebrows worldwide.
In the meantime, the Trump household’s rising ties to the crypto world, by way of token launches, regulation proposals, and perks like unique donor dinners, are more and more blurring the traces between politics and digital finance. Whereas this may increasingly deliver crypto larger visibility within the US, critics warn it dangers undermining the trade’s credibility and neutrality.
As Pakistan pins its hopes on digital finance to flee financial turmoil, the combination of geopolitical alliances and speculative investments might both mark a turning level or deepen the instability.
