Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency has set up a dedicated team to investigate crimes involving digital assets, adding an enforcement arm to the country’s expanding crypto framework.
The new unit, called the Digital Assets Crime Investigation Team, was established under the National Command and Control Center, according to a July 22 report by The Block. Its remit includes cases tied to digital assets such as money laundering and terrorist financing.
New investigative team
Muhammad Athar Waheed, director of the FIA’s Counter Terrorism Wing, said the team will focus on offenses involving digital assets. The reported scope includes financial crimes as well as cases linked to the movement of funds for terrorist activity.
The creation of a dedicated unit suggests Pakistan is building out specialist capacity as crypto-related activity becomes a larger part of its regulatory and law-enforcement agenda. The team sits within the FIA structure but was formed under the National Command and Control Center, the report said.
Coordination with regulator
The task force is expected to work alongside the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, or PVARA, which serves as the country’s digital-asset regulator. That link places the investigative unit next to the body responsible for supervising parts of the domestic virtual-asset sector.
Pakistan gave PVARA a stronger legal footing earlier this year. In March, the country’s parliament passed the Virtual Assets Act, making PVARA a permanent federal regulator. Under that framework, the agency has licensing authority over exchanges, custodians and token issuers.
Broader enforcement plans
Waheed also proposed the creation of similar digital-asset-focused teams at other Pakistani agencies. According to the report, he suggested parallel units at the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency and the Anti-Narcotics Force.
Those proposed teams would be aimed at cybercrime and illegal drug trafficking involving digital assets. The proposals indicate that officials are considering a wider inter-agency approach, rather than limiting digital-asset investigations to a single federal body.
Expanding crypto agenda
The enforcement move comes as Pakistan continues to broaden its digital-asset strategy beyond policing and regulation. The country has recently advanced several state-backed initiatives tied to crypto and related infrastructure.
According to the source report, the government had previously announced plans for a national Bitcoin reserve. It also allocated 2,000 megawatts of power for Bitcoin mining and AI data centers, linking its digital-asset ambitions with energy planning and computing infrastructure.
Taken together, the new FIA unit, the establishment of PVARA as a permanent regulator, and the government’s wider digital-asset initiatives show Pakistan developing both oversight and state-led crypto programs at the same time.
Source: en.bloomingbit.io