{
  "id": 2589448,
  "title": "Pakistan eyes $400mn remittance savings through stablecoins, says Bilal bin Saqib",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/pakistan-eyes-400mn-remittance-savings-through-stablecoins-says-bilal",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-08-22T14:22:31.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Business Recorder",
    "slug": "business-recorder",
    "url": "https://www.brecorder.com/news/40436066/pakistan-eyes-400mn-remittance-savings-through-stablecoins-says-bilal-bin-saqib"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Pakistan is investigating the potential of regulated stablecoins to cut remittance costs by nearly $400 million annually, according to Bilal bin Saqib, Chairman of the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA). This initiative is part of a larger government effort to identify applications for virtual assets, including cross-border payments, digital exports, trade finance, and tokenized financial assets. Saqib emphasized that the technology holds significant promise in addressing Pakistan's financial challenges. Currently, a large portion of remittances arrive via the outdated SWIFT system. By implementing stablecoin-based remittances, the country could save $400 million annually, based on World Bank data suggesting a 6% global average cost for sending $200. Pakistan has initiated a licensing procedure for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs), which is a pivotal step towards integrating the nation into the global digital asset economy within a regulated setting. The Virtual Assets Act, 2026, mandates existing VASPs to submit applications for a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) by September 5, 2026, or face suspension of operations. Saqib further highlighted the potential of stablecoins to benefit Pakistan's freelancers, software developers, designers, creators, and other digital workers who receive payments from overseas. He questioned how the country will accommodate these payments in 2030, focusing on settlement speed, costs, and the capture of value within the formal economy. The government is also evaluating tokenization's role in addressing Pakistan's shortage of financing for small and medium-sized enterprises, exporters, agriculture, energy, and infrastructure. SMEs constitute 90% of the country's business and 40% of its GDP, yet SME financing amounted to only Rs850 billion in March. Tokenized trade receivables and private credit could potentially link Pakistani borrowers with international capital pools. Saqib explained that blockchain maintains and transfers ownership and transactions on digital records, while stablecoins are typically digital representations of currencies like the dollar moving on blockchain rails. Tokenization transforms traditional assets into programmable digital forms, enabling secure and transparent access to previously inaccessible or illiquid assets. The global stablecoin market is valued at over $300 billion, and tokenized assets on blockchain infrastructure have already reached tens of billions of USD. Global institutions such as BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, as well as advanced economies like Hong Kong and Singapore recognize the validity of this technology. Pakistan's virtual assets regulation journey is divided into three phases: establishing a legal and regulatory framework, responsibly building the market by licensing credible operators and enhancing anti-money laundering compliance, and developing national use cases. The third phase would concentrate on remittances, cross-border settlements, digital exports, trade finance, private credit, and tokenized securities. Saqib stressed that each proposal should be evaluated based on its potential to deliver measurable economic benefits to Pakistan. He acknowledged that Pakistan has often lagged in adopting technological revolutions in the past and urged the country to build capacity to regulate emerging technologies rather than simply following other markets.",
  "summary": "Pakistan is exploring the use of regulated stablecoins for remittances, with potential savings of around $400 million a year if the technology can reduce transfer costs by one percentage point on the country’s roughly $40 billion annual remittance inflows, Bilal bin Saqib, Chairman of the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA), said. The proposal forms part of a broader government…",
  "key_points": [
    "Pakistan aims to save $400 million annually through stablecoin remittances.",
    "Stablecoin initiative part of broader government effort to use virtual assets.",
    "Pakistan's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) overseeing licensing process."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}