Pakistan Creates Crypto Crime Unit to Track Money Laundering, Terror Financing

Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency has created a dedicated unit to investigate crimes involving digital assets, including money laundering and terrorist financing.

The Digital Assets Crime Investigation Team was established under the National Command and Control Center, The Block reported on July 22.

Muhammad Athar Waheed, director of the FIA’s Counter Terrorism Wing, said the unit will focus on crimes involving digital assets, including money laundering and terrorist financing.

The task force will work alongside the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, or PVARA, the country’s digital-asset regulator. Waheed also proposed creating similar units at the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency and the Anti-Narcotics Force to tackle cybercrime and illegal drug trafficking involving digital assets.

Pakistan has recently expanded its digital-asset framework and related initiatives. In March, Pakistan’s parliament passed the Virtual Assets Act, making PVARA a permanent federal regulator. The agency has licensing authority over exchanges, custodians and token issuers.

Pakistan is also pursuing a state-backed stablecoin. The government previously announced plans for a national Bitcoin reserve and allocated 2,000 megawatts of power for Bitcoin mining and AI data centers.