Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency has created a specialized cryptocurrency investigation unit inside its National Command and Control Centre, expanding the country’s capacity to pursue financial crimes linked to virtual assets.
The new unit is intended to investigate the use of cryptocurrencies in money laundering and terrorism financing, while a separate body, the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, is responsible for regulation and licensing of the sector.
New investigative unit
According to the source report, the FIA has placed the crypto-focused team within the NC3, a central platform used for coordinated enforcement activity. The unit’s mandate centers on criminal misuse of virtual currencies rather than market oversight.
FIA Counter-Terrorism Wing Director Dr Muhammad Athar Waheed said the NC3 will bring together a range of financial-crime and digital-investigation capabilities. These include anti-money laundering and virtual-currency investigation desks, as well as Interpol coordination, open-source intelligence work, cyber patrolling, and dark web investigations.
That structure suggests Pakistan is seeking a more integrated approach to cross-border and online crypto-related cases, particularly where digital assets may be used to obscure the movement of funds.
Regulation and licensing push
The enforcement move comes alongside a wider government effort to formalize the crypto sector. In the framework described by the report, criminal investigations will remain with the FIA, while the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority will oversee licensing and regulation.
The broader policy push includes plans to lift a banking ban and establish licensing pathways for exchanges. Pakistan is also engaging with international crypto initiatives as it develops its domestic approach to virtual assets.
Together, those steps point to a dual-track strategy: tighter policing of illicit activity and a clearer route for legal market participants to operate under official supervision.
Islamic law questions remain
Even as the institutional framework develops, Pakistan is still working through a key policy question: whether crypto is permissible under Islamic law.
The report said discussions are continuing around how to distinguish speculative tokens from asset-backed instruments. Examples under consideration include fully reserved stablecoins and sukuk recorded on blockchain systems.
That distinction could prove important for how different categories of digital assets are treated as policymakers try to reconcile financial innovation, law-enforcement concerns, and religious compliance.
Broader context
Pakistan’s latest move reflects an attempt to separate crypto regulation from crypto crime enforcement while building both at the same time. The FIA’s new unit gives authorities a dedicated channel for investigating illicit virtual-currency use, but the wider framework is still evolving as officials consider banking access, exchange licensing, international coordination, and unresolved Sharia-related questions.
Source: decrypt.co