Pakistan creates Digital Asset Authority to regulate crypto
Pakistan's Ministry of Finance has approved the establishment of the Pakistan Digital Assets Authority (PDAA) to regulate blockchain-based financial infrastructure. The PDAA will oversee licensing, exchanges, custodians, wallets, tokenized platforms, stablecoins, and decentralized finance applications. Federal Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb emphasized the need for regulation to position Pakistan as a leader in financial innovation. The PDAA will also focus on tokenizing national assets, facilitating regulated Bitcoin mining, and supporting blockchain startups. This initiative follows recommendations from the Cryptocurrency Council, which includes former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao as an adviser. Despite previous skepticism about legalizing cryptocurrencies due to regulatory concerns, Pakistan's crypto market is growing rapidly, with projections of over 27 million users and $1.6 billion in revenue by 2025.
