Pakistan To Implement New Digital Currency Regulations
Pakistan is planning to implement new cryptocurrency regulations in an effort to improve its track record fighting financial crime.
Pakistan, which is seeking to reduce levels of crime such as money laundering and terrorist financing, will now introduce a licensing scheme for electronic money institutions. Dunya News reported that cryptocurrency trading has been banned in the country since April last year.
The Express Tribune quoted unnamed sources as saying: “These regulations will help combating money laundering and terrorism financing while it will also help regulation of digital currency throughout the country,”
A ceremony related to the regulations’ introduction will take place at the offices of Pakistan’s central bank, the State Bank of Pakistan, on Monday, attended by federal minister for finance Asad Umar and the bank’s governor, Tariq Bajwa.
The move was a reaction to demands from international monitoring body the Finance Action Task Force (FATF), which has repeatedly made known concerns about cryptocurrencies’ role in terrorist financing.
In February, the FATF further noted that Pakistan had made insufficient progress with an action plan for combating the phenomenon in general.
According to Reuters: “Given the limited progress on action plan items […] the FATF urges Pakistan to swiftly complete its action plan, particularly those with timelines of May 2019,”
Last week Pakistan’s finance regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SECP), announced it was taking action against nine companies accused of using cryptocurrency as part of illegal operations.
The statement in part said: “Such schemes, offering hefty profits and incentives can deprive the unsuspecting public of their hard-earned money who fall prey to the inducements,”
“It is further clarified that a mere registration of a company with SECP does not mean that it can get involved in unauthorized and unlawful activities.”