Pakistan has set up a dedicated investigative organisation to respond to crypto-related financial crimes, including money laundering and terror financing.

On July 21 local time, blockchain media outlet Decrypt reported that Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) set up a cryptocurrency investigation unit under the newly launched National Command and Control Centre (NC3). NC3 consolidates investigation and response functions related to financial crime in one organisation.

The move comes as the Pakistani government rapidly pushes to bring digital assets into the formal system. The new unit will investigate cases in which cryptocurrencies are used for crime, while the recently launched Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) will handle market regulation and supervision of operators.

The Pakistani government earlier lifted restrictions on crypto-related bank transactions that had been in place for about eight years and began procedures to introduce exchange licensing. By setting up an investigation unit in addition to creating a regulatory body, it appears to be seeking to build both a formalisation framework and a crime-response system at the same time.

Muhammad Attar Wahid (무함마드 아타르 와히드), director of the FIA's counterterrorism wing, said in an interview with local media outlet Dawn that it plans to focus on investigating illegal transactions using cryptocurrencies. He said similar dedicated units are needed at the national cybercrime investigation agency and narcotics enforcement organisations, and stressed the need to block routes through which cryptocurrencies are used in cybercrime and drug trafficking. As a result, Pakistan is expected to overhaul not only regulatory bodies but also enforcement systems, including investigation deadlines and processing procedures.

The policy push is also gaining speed. After Pakistan ranked third in Chainalysis' 2025 Global Crypto Adoption Index, it created PVARA and has reviewed the introduction of cryptocurrency exchange licensing and plans to tokenise state-owned assets.

External cooperation is also being pursued. Pakistan is reviewing a plan to use the stablecoin USD1 for cross-border payments together with an affiliate of World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a major cryptocurrency business of the Trump family. It is moving to use cryptocurrencies not only in domestic financial infrastructure but also as a tool for external economic cooperation.

Still, whether cryptocurrencies are permissible under Islamic law remains a variable. Jamia Darul Uloom Karachi, a leading Islamic seminary in Pakistan, said in June that cryptocurrencies do not qualify as "property" recognised under Islamic law and cannot be considered a valid means of payment. In response, Bilal Bin Saqib (빌랄 빈 사키브), chairman of PVARA, has asked religious circles to avoid judging digital assets as a single category, and to review them by distinguishing purely speculative tokens from reserve-backed stablecoins and real-world asset (RWA) products such as sukuk (Islamic bonds) recorded on blockchains.

With the establishment of the dedicated unit, Pakistan now has two pillars responsible for regulating the cryptocurrency market and investigating related crimes. But with religious circles yet to settle their stance on the scope of permissible cryptocurrency use, the pace of formalisation and whether the market expands are expected to be influenced by the direction of this debate.