Pakistan establishes Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority PVARA to promote the development of the cryptocurrency industry

According to Cointelegraph, the federal government of Pakistan has established the Pakistan Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (PVARA) as an independent agency responsible for regulating, licensing, and supervising virtual asset service providers in the country's digital asset industry, and ensuring compliance with international standards, including guidelines from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). Finance Minister Mohammad Aurangzeb stated that Pakistan will attract global investment and promote financial innovation through an innovative regulatory framework. Although the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has expressed opposition to Pakistan's proposal to provide electricity subsidies for high energy consuming industries such as Bitcoin miners, the country is still actively promoting digital transformation and the development of the cryptocurrency industry.