Pakistan lets licensed crypto firms access banks

TLDR

Pakistan has reopened its banking system to licensed crypto firms, reversing a 2018 restriction but keeping tight controls on banks direct exposure to digital assets.

1. Pakistans central bank now lets banks serve firms licensed under the Virtual Assets Act 2026, reversing a 2018 ban that kept crypto businesses outside the formal banking system.
2. Only licensed virtual asset service providers gain access, with strict anti-money-laundering checks and segregated non-interest local currency accounts, while banks remain barred from trading or holding crypto.
3. The impact will depend on how quickly Pakistans new regulator licenses firms and how banks implement these rules in practice over the next couple of years.

Deep Dive

1. What Exactly Changed

According to a recent policy shift, Pakistans central bank has opened the formal banking system to licensed virtual asset service providers.

This follows the countrys new Virtual Assets Act 2026, which creates a licensing regime overseen by the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA).

Banks can now open accounts and provide basic services to firms that hold a PVARA license, reversing the 2018 instruction that effectively blocked banks from dealing with crypto-linked entities.

2. Access With Tight Limits

The new rules are not a free pass for banks to become crypto traders. Reports note that banks are still prohibited from investing in virtual assets for their own books or on behalf of clients, and customer funds linked to these firms must sit in segregated, non-interest-bearing local currency accounts.

Banks must perform full due diligence, ongoing transaction monitoring, and suspicious activity reporting, tying access tightly to licensing and compliance rather than relaxing oversight.

For licensed exchanges, brokers, and other crypto businesses, this should make it easier to handle payroll, pay suppliers, and manage fiat on and off ramps through regulated channels instead of informal workarounds.

3. What To Watch Next

The key variable is PVARAs licensing pipeline: which local platforms, global exchanges, and service providers can actually obtain and maintain a license, and on what timelines.

Bank behavior will matter as well, since risk policies could determine how many licensed firms actually get accounts and what limits they face on flows or client types.

Further rules or guidance around consumer protection, taxation, and cross-border flows could shape how much this translates into real retail and institutional crypto usage in Pakistan.

Conclusion

Pakistans move to let licensed crypto firms access banks signals a shift from outright restriction toward regulated integration of digital assets into its financial system. The framework lowers operational barriers for compliant firms but keeps banks in a narrow, low-risk role, so the real impact will depend on licensing scale, bank appetite, and follow-on regulation.