The digital asset market in Pakistan is entering a new phase of regulatory certainty. Bilal bin Saqib, head of the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA), made a fundamentally important statement: cryptocurrencies cannot be considered a single asset class from the perspective of Islamic law (Sharia). Each digital asset must undergo an individual assessment.
This statement is a direct response to a recent fatwa (religious ruling) by influential Islamic scholar Mufti Taqi Usmani. He declared purchases using cryptocurrency, including the stablecoin USDT, impermissible, as he did not recognize digital assets as property. However, PVARA's position offers a more nuanced and pragmatic approach.
From my point of view, such a differentiated approach is the only correct path for countries with strong religious law. Bitcoin, operating on proof-of-work, and USDT, backed by fiat reserves, have fundamentally different economic natures. Assessing them by a single standard means ignoring technological and economic realities.
Why is an individual approach critically important?
Sharia prohibits riba (usury), gharar (excessive uncertainty), and maisir (gambling). Different crypto assets comply with these criteria in different ways. For example, fully reserved stablecoins may be recognized as property, while tokens with staking or collateral mechanisms may fall under the prohibition. PVARA, in essence, proposes creating a precedent-based framework rather than a universal ban.
As of now, no official revision of Mufti Taqi Usmani's fatwa has been announced following the meeting with the regulator. However, the statement by the head of PVARA creates a legal and theological basis for such revisions to occur in the future. This is a signal to the market: Pakistan does not intend to completely block the crypto industry but aims to build a Sharia-compliant regulatory model.
Cryptalist analyst's conclusion: PVARA's position is a masterful move that resolves the conflict between religious law and technological progress. Instead of a total ban, which would set the country back, the regulator chooses a path of targeted validation. I expect that within the next 6-12 months, we will see the first precedents of approval for specific crypto assets in Pakistan, creating a powerful precedent for the entire Islamic world.