Massive energy allocation aims to boost crypto and AI sectors in Pakistan

In a bold move to position itself as a regional tech hub, Pakistan is set to allocate 2,000 megawatts of electricity exclusively for Bitcoin mining and AI-powered data centers, according to a recent Bloomberg report.

The initiative, spearheaded by the Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC), will see the repurposing of three underutilized coal-powered plants—currently running at just 15% capacity—to support this high-energy venture. This marks a major step in Pakistan’s broader strategy to legalize cryptocurrency, attract foreign direct investment, and modernize its digital infrastructure.

Crypto and AI to Drive Industrial Innovation

Renowned Bitcoin mining researcher Daniel Batten noted that if half the allocated energy is utilized for BTC mining under optimal conditions, Pakistan could potentially mine around 17,000 BTC annually. Such output could elevate Pakistan to a competitive position in the global crypto mining race.

Batten also hinted at the possibility of regional competition, suggesting countries like India might feel pressure to accelerate their own crypto strategies in response.

Strategic Moves Toward Crypto Adoption

Pakistan’s crypto ambitions have gained momentum in recent months. Highlights include:

• Initiation of regulatory frameworks for the crypto sector.

• Appointment of Binance founder Changpeng Zhao as an advisor to the PCC.

• A strategic partnership with World Liberty Financial (WLFI)—a DeFi project with ties to Donald Trump—to boost blockchain adoption.

These moves indicate a significant policy shift aimed at integrating blockchain and digital assets into Pakistan’s economic fabric.

Balancing Growth with IMF Commitments

Interestingly, this crypto push comes despite Pakistan’s ongoing financial program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The country recently secured a $2.1 billion bailout package, yet continues to double down on digital assets—a move that places it alongside countries like El Salvador, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Argentina, all of which have pursued Bitcoin projects under similar IMF constraints.

The IMF has consistently cautioned that sovereign involvement in Bitcoin could present macroeconomic risks. However, countries like El Salvador have remained undeterred, growing their reserves to over 6,000 BTC, currently valued at approximately $678 million.

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In a major development for Pakistan’s digital economy, Binance founder and crypto billionaire Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has been appointed strategic adviser to the newly formed Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC), according to a press release from the Finance Division on Monday.

The PCC, launched last month, aims to regulate and integrate blockchain and digital assets into Pakistan’s financial system, positioning the country as a key player in the global Web3 ecosystem.

The appointment of Zhao comes on the heels of a series of government-led initiatives to explore digital currency innovation. On February 25, following a meeting between Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and a foreign crypto delegation, the ministry floated the idea of a National Crypto Council. The move materialized quickly, with entrepreneur Bilal Bin Saqib appointed in March as the chief adviser to the finance minister on crypto affairs.

The announcement of Zhao’s advisory role was made during a high-level PCC meeting chaired by Minister Aurangzeb, bringing together key government stakeholders. Zhao also held separate meetings with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar.

“This is a landmark moment for Pakistan,” Aurangzeb stated. “With Zhao onboard, we’re sending a strong signal: Pakistan is open for innovation. We’re moving rapidly toward becoming a regional powerhouse for Web3, digital finance, and blockchain-driven growth.”

PCC CEO Bilal Bin Saqib echoed the sentiment, calling it a step toward the “future of finance”.

“And who better to guide us than CZ — a pioneer who built the world’s largest crypto exchange and reshaped how billions view financial freedom,” Saqib said.

According to the press release, Zhao will advise on regulation, infrastructure, education, and adoption of crypto technologies in Pakistan. His guidance is expected to foster a compliant, inclusive, and globally competitive crypto ecosystem, working in tandem with both public and private sectors.

“Pakistan is a country of 240 million people, with over 60% under the age of 30,” Zhao remarked. “The potential here is limitless.”

The statement described the move as a “bold new era”, aligning Pakistan with global crypto-forward nations like Singapore, Dubai, and Switzerland, all of which have embraced blockchain as a pillar of future economic strategy.

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Pakistan has officially stepped into the future of digital finance! The government has launched the Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC), a groundbreaking move aimed at regulating and integrating blockchain technology and digital assets into the country’s financial system.

Announced by the Ministry of Finance on Friday, this initiative is set to shape the nation’s crypto landscape, ensuring a structured, secure, and innovative approach to digital assets.

Leadership at the Helm

To lead this ambitious effort, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has been appointed as the Chair of the Pakistan Crypto Council, reflecting the government’s commitment to digital transformation. Bilal Bin Saqib, a blockchain expert and the Chief Advisor to the Finance Minister on PCC, will serve as the CEO, spearheading policy development and innovation.

The council’s board includes heavyweights such as the Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan, the Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), the Federal Law Secretary, and the Federal IT Secretary. This diverse leadership ensures a balanced and forward-thinking approach to crypto regulation.

Why This Matters for Pakistan

Speaking at the launch, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb emphasized the importance of keeping pace with global financial advancements:

“The world is moving towards digital finance, and Pakistan must not be left behind. The establishment of the Pakistan Crypto Council is a step towards embracing innovation while ensuring regulatory protection for investors and the financial system.”

Similarly, Bilal Bin Saqib highlighted the Council’s vision:

“This is not just about regulations—it’s about creating an ecosystem where blockchain and digital finance can thrive. Our goal is to position Pakistan as a serious player in the global digital economy while ensuring security, transparency, and innovation.”

What’s Next?

The Pakistan Crypto Council has outlined clear priorities, including:

1. Developing regulatory guidelines to encourage crypto adoption.
2. Engaging with international blockchain organizations to implement best practices.
3. Collaborating with fintech startups, investors, and developers to fuel responsible innovation.
4. Ensuring consumer protection and financial security through strong legal frameworks.

A New Chapter for Pakistan’s Digital Economy

With the launch of PCC, Pakistan is sending a clear message—the country is open for business and ready to lead in digital finance. This initiative not only embraces technological progress but also positions Pakistan as a forward-thinking player in the global crypto space.

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Bilal bin Saqib poses with his MBE in this photo from 2023. — bilalbinsaqib.com

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On Monday, cryptocurrency prices hit new lows as a result of regulatory worries and a general investor reluctance to engage in risky assets due to impending interest rate increases. The market value of Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, dropped roughly 5% to a three-month low of $18,387.

The second-largest cryptocurrency, ether, fell 3% to a two-month low of $1,285 and has lost more than 10% of its value in the previous 24 hours. The majority of the smaller tokens had larger losses. Over the weekend, a significant upgrade to the Ethereum blockchain—which supports the ether token—called the Merge changed how transactions are handled and reduced energy consumption.

The value of the token has decreased amid rumours that comments made last week by Gary Gensler, chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, suggested the new structure would draw additional regulation. The upgrades’ surrounding trades were likewise unwound.

The regulatory outlook is guesswork, according to Matthew Dibb, COO of Singapore’s Stack Funds cryptocurrency platform. Since the Merge, the markets have shed a lot of their excitement, he claimed. Given the uneasy global backdrop, he continued, “It’s really been a sell-the-news type of event,” and predicted that ether would test $950 in the near future.

“From a fundamental and technical standpoint, the current situation does not look promising. There isn’t a clear quick positive catalyst that will support these markets and inject a tonne of fresh cash and liquidity, in our opinion.

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The Sindh High Court (SHC) has given the Finance Ministry two months to submit its suggestions on the legal status of Bitcoin in Pakistan. The decision was made at a hearing on a petition to legalise cryptocurrencies in Pakistan. The justices hearing the petition were also irritated by the Finance Ministry’s recent submission.

During the hearing, the Finance Ministry’s lawyer was interrogated by the bench for producing a sloppy report despite being allotted three months. According to the lawyer, the Ministry has convened two discussions with key stakeholders so far.
The lawyer went on to say that legalising cryptocurrency in the country is a hard issue that would take time to resolve. The bench quizzed the lawyer, noting that the Finance Ministry is dragging its feet on a straightforward matter.

The bench adjourned the hearing to June 13 and instructed the lawyer to guarantee that the Finance Ministry provides its proposals on cryptocurrency legalisation in the country at the next hearing.

Note that the former Science and Technology Minister, Shibli Faraz, revealed earlier this year at the inaugural Pakistan Blockchain Summit 2022 that the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), and Finance Division all intend to legalise cryptocurrency and are working on it.

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No one noticed when hackers stole almost a half-billion dollars in crypto currencies.

That’s the crazy conclusion from the Ronin team’s announcement Tuesday morning that 173,600 ether and 25.5 million USDC stable coins were taken from their network starting March 23. Ronin is an Ethereum sidechain designed for the popular blockchain-integrated game Axie Infinity.

This theft, valued at $615 million, is one of the greatest DeFi losses to date, surpassing the $600 million in crypto stolen in August 2021 by the Poly Network breach.

To make matters worse, according to the official Ronin Network blog post, the lost funds were discovered by a user who was unable to withdraw their own ether.The bridge contract’s ETH and USDC deposits have been drained, according to Tuesday’s blog post. “At this time, Ronin Network users are unable to withdraw or deposit cash.”

Axie Infinity is a popular pay-to-play game in the Philippines, in which players pay real money to gain access to the game in the hopes of collecting tokens that can be exchanged for cash.

Unlike earlier DeFi disasters, the Ronin hack does not appear to be a smart contract vulnerability, indicating that there wasn’t necessarily a defect in the system. Rather, the thieves took a more traditional way, stealing the cryptographic keys from Axie Infinity developer Sky Mavis and “an Axie DAO third-party validator.”

“In order to fabricate false withdrawals, the attacker used hacked private keys,” Ronin explains.

To trace the funds, Ronin claims it’s cooperating with law enforcement and the blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis. As with other public blockchains, such as Bitcoin, it is feasible to see where the stolen funds are as of this writing.

While part of the boosted ether and USDC are on the move, Ronin points out that the majority of the boosted ether and USDC is held in two wallets owned by the hacker or hackers. Some monies have already been sent once more. The initial transfers in question on March 23 are documented in those wallets.

Perhaps a half-billion dollar attack wasn’t enough to set off any internal alarm bells in the exploit-prone world of DeFi. Either that, or the so-called future of finance lacks sufficient alarm bells to sound the alarm.

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The fate of Robinhood, the highly regarded cryptocurrency and stock trading application, is inseparable from the fate of Dogecoin. Yes, according to the company itself, Elon Musk often launches meme cryptocurrencies, and the company submitted an application for listing on Thursday.

In the Robinhood prospectus issued by the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the company stated that in the first three months of 2021, a large part of its revenue will come from trading cryptocurrencies.

A large part of the operation revolved around Dogecoin. Robinhood said he was worried that the rocket would shut down before reaching the moon.

“If the demand for Dogecoin transactions decreases and is not replaced by new demand for other cryptocurrencies that can be traded on our platform, our business, financial condition, and results of operations may be adversely affected,” said in the outlook Wrote in.

Of course, robustness does not only depend on cryptocurrency transactions. With the rise of meme stocks such as GameStop and the Wall Street Bets subreddit, the company quickly attracted public attention.

Nevertheless, according to the prospectus, cryptocurrency provides a large part of the company’s revenue, thanks in large part to Dogecoin.

“Although we currently support trading in a portfolio of seven cryptocurrencies, in the three months ending March 31, 2021, 34% of our cryptocurrency trading revenue was attributed to Dogecoin transactions. In the three months ended December 31, this proportion was 4%, 2020.”

Other risk factors clarified by Robinhood include the possible regulation of cryptocurrencies. If customers are allowed to deposit or withdraw cryptocurrencies in the future (not just Is buying and selling them), the loss of client funds due to anticipated accidents, for example, “typographical errors”.

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