Bilal bin Saqib, who heads the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA), met with Mufti Taqi Usmani to discuss the status of digital assets, according to Radio Pakistan . Mufti Usmani is widely recognized as the scholar whose fatwa declared cryptocurrency trading impermissible under Islamic law.
Pakistan’s crypto regulator has met with the Islamic scholar behind a fatwa banning digital assets, signaling that religious guidance is becoming a formal input into the country’s evolving cryptocurrency policy framework.
Bilal bin Saqib, who heads the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA), met with Mufti Taqi Usmani to discuss the status of digital assets, according to Radio Pakistan. Mufti Usmani is widely recognized as the scholar whose fatwa declared cryptocurrency trading impermissible under Islamic law. For related coverage, see Post-Ceasefire Crypto Outlook: Hangover or Buying Opportunity?.
The meeting comes as PVARA, the regulatory body Pakistan established to oversee virtual assets, continues to build out a licensing and compliance framework for crypto firms operating in the country. Pakistan has already moved to seek crypto exchange licenses through PVARA, making the regulator’s outreach to a prominent critic of digital assets a notable development.
Why the fatwa carries weight in Pakistan’s crypto debate
Mufti Taqi Usmani is one of the most influential living scholars of Islamic finance. His fatwa banning digital assets frames cryptocurrency as incompatible with Sharia principles, a position that carries significant public influence in a country where religious guidance shapes financial behavior for millions.
The fatwa has become a reference point in Pakistan’s broader policy discussion over whether and how to permit crypto activity. A regulator choosing to engage directly with the scholar behind that ruling suggests PVARA views religious legitimacy as a factor in its regulatory approach, not merely a parallel debate.
Pakistan has simultaneously pursued multiple angles on digital assets. The country has initiated trials with a sovereign digital currency and explored a state-controlled Bitcoin strategy, indicating that outright prohibition is not the direction policymakers are heading. The meeting with Mufti Usmani may represent an effort to reconcile regulatory ambition with religious concerns.
What comes next after the regulator’s outreach
No policy outcome or joint statement has been confirmed from the meeting. Whether the conversation leads to revised guidance, a formal consultation process, or simply represents a diplomatic gesture remains unclear.
Readers tracking Pakistan’s crypto regulatory trajectory should watch for any updated positions from PVARA or new statements from Mufti Usmani’s office. Pakistan has been inviting crypto firms for licensing, and any religious endorsement or continued opposition could materially affect how quickly that process advances.
The meeting itself, however, confirms that Pakistan’s approach to crypto regulation is not purely technocratic. Religious scholarship is being treated as a stakeholder in the policy process, a dynamic that few other jurisdictions face at this scale.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency and digital asset markets carry significant risk. Always do your own research before making decisions.