Pakistan launches crypto crime unit and licensing

TLDR

Pakistan has set up a specialized crypto crime unit and built a licensing regime for digital asset firms, tightening enforcement while formalizing the market.

1. Pakistans Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) created a Cryptocurrency Investigation Unit in its NC3 center to target money laundering and terrorism financing via crypto.
2. The Virtual Assets Act 2026 established the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) with a multi?category licensing framework for exchanges, custodians, brokers, and token issuers.
3. For crypto users and businesses, the environment is shifting toward regulated but closely monitored, with more bank access for licensed firms and higher risk for informal or unlicensed activity.

Deep Dive

1. Dedicated Crime Unit

Pakistans FIA has launched a crypto?focused investigation unit inside the National Command and Control Centre (NC3), tasked with probing money laundering, terrorism financing, and other crimes involving digital assets, according to multiple reports from local media and international crypto outlets.

FIAs counter?terrorism leadership has stressed that the unit investigates criminal use of crypto rather than regulating the market, and has urged other agencies such as the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency and Anti?Narcotics Force to build similar specialist teams.

NC3 itself consolidates anti?money?laundering tools, border monitoring, cyber patrols, dark?web investigations, and Interpol coordination, meaning crypto cases will be handled within a broader real?time financial crime infrastructure rather than as isolated cyber incidents.

2. Licensing Framework For Crypto Firms

In parallel, Parliament passed the Virtual Assets Act 2026, creating PVARA as a federal regulator for digital assets and giving it authority to license exchanges, custodians, brokers, and token issuers under a structured regime. Draft Virtual Asset Services Regulations describe ten licence categories and a no?objection?certificate pathway that resembles a sandboxed onboarding process for new entrants.

The State Bank of Pakistan has allowed regulated banks to open accounts for PVARA?licensed firms, subject to licence verification, account monitoring, separation of client funds, and standard anti?money?laundering controls. PVARA has invited global platforms to seek local licences, and some reports indicate approvals for large exchanges such as Binance and HTX, signaling that Pakistan wants major players operating under its rules.

3. Impact On Users And Global Crypto

Pakistan ranks among the worlds largest crypto markets, with high retail adoption and significant peer?to?peer activity. The new unit and licensing regime aim to channel that usage into supervised venues and to clamp down on illicit flows, in line with global trends highlighted by bodies like the Financial Action Task Force.

Religious scholars in Pakistan remain divided on whether various forms of crypto are permissible under Islamic law, and PVARA has sought guidance on differentiating speculative tokens from asset?backed instruments such as stablecoins and real?world asset tokens. These debates could influence which products are licensed and how strictly speculative trading is constrained.

For global firms, Pakistan becomes a sizable but compliance?heavy market: aligning with PVARA rules could open access to a high?adoption population, while non?compliant operations are more likely to be investigated, blocked by banks, or pushed out.

Conclusion

Pakistan is moving from loosely supervised crypto activity toward a dual structure of strict enforcement and formal licensing. A specialized crime unit gives authorities more tools to pursue illicit flows, while PVARAs framework offers a path for regulated exchanges and service providers. For users and businesses, the opportunity is a more stable, bank?connected market, balanced against tighter controls and reduced space for informal or opaque activity.