ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has completed its virtual asset licensing framework in less than six months, with existing virtual asset service providers required to submit applications by September 5 or cease operations.
The Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) on Friday notified the licensing regulations and opened its licensing portal, completing the framework under which virtual asset service providers will be licensed and supervised in the country.
The Regulations, issued under the Virtual Assets Act, 2026, establish 10 licence categories, spanning exchange, custody, broker-dealer, advisory, lending and borrowing, derivatives, asset management, transfer and settlement, issuance, and mining-related services, each supported by activity-specific regulations setting out detailed conduct, prudential, technology and AML/CFT requirements.
Existing operators face a statutory deadline of 5th September 2026.
Under Section 70 of the Act, any person who was providing virtual asset services before the Act commenced must submit an NOC application by that date, or cease operations. Operating without submitting an application after that date is an offence.
Minister of State and PVARA Chairman Bilal Bin Saqib said: “A generation of young Pakistanis built this market before the state was ready for it. Today the state catches up.”
For millions of Pakistanis, he said, this means their assets are no longer held on just hope. “Licensed Virtual Asset Service Providers must keep customer holdings separate from their own, cannot lend or pledge them without written consent, and cannot touch them if the platform fails. Those will be legal obligations now, not promises.”
He added, “To providers: this is an invitation. Get licensed, get banked, and build something here that lasts. To the young Pakistanis already in this market: you were ahead of the state. Now the state is with you.”
The Regulations follow a public consultation (reference PVARA/CON/001/2026) which ran from 11 June to 2 July 2026 and included a public stakeholder webinar.
Licensing operates as a two-stage process. Applicants intending to incorporate in Pakistan will either go for a sandbox or first obtain a No-Objection Certificate under Section 19, then apply for a full licence following incorporation. However, all the transitional persons must submit their NOC application by September 5, 2026. All applicants can submit applications through the PVARA webpage.
Licensed providers will gain access to the formal banking system. State Bank of Pakistan Circular No 10 of 2026, issued on 14 April 2026, permits regulated entities to open accounts for PVARA-licensed virtual asset service providers, including segregated Client Money Accounts, replacing the prohibition that had been in place since 2018.
The framework has been built in less than 6 months. PVARA was constituted as a permanent statutory body by Act of Parliament in March 2026, secured banking access for licensed providers through State Bank of Pakistan Circular No 10 in April 2026, and has now notified its licensing regulations following a full public consultation leading to promulgation of the licensing framework.
Few jurisdictions have moved from a standing prohibition to an operational licensing regime in that time.
2026-08-22 17:53:00
