ZURICH: Pakistan has placed itself at the centre of the global debate on digital assets and tokenised finance, with Minister of State and Chairman Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority Bilal Bin Saqib telling a major international forum that the rules governing money are being rewritten.
Addressing the Point Zero Forum 2026 in Zurich, Bin Saqib said Pakistan was ready to help shape the future of finance rather than simply adopt systems designed elsewhere.
“Money has become software, and software does not respect borders,” he told delegates. “We are used to thinking of money as something a state simply has. A flag, a border, a currency. That era is ending.”
Pakistan-first strategy
Speaking on the panel “Unchaining Tokenized Money: Stablecoins, CBDCs, and the Race for Scale,” Bin Saqib appeared alongside Dr Mampho Modise, Deputy Governor of the South African Reserve Bank.
He said countries with large digital-asset user bases could no longer ignore the sector.
“Pakistan is approaching digital assets with a Pakistan-first strategy,” he said. “Our position is that emerging economies should help shape the rules of tokenised finance, not simply inherit infrastructure built elsewhere.”
He added that governments must govern the future responsibly rather than try to stop it.
Global financial dialogue
Beyond the main session, Bin Saqib joined senior invitation-only roundtables with central bankers, regulators and financial leaders from Singapore, Japan, the Philippines, the Gulf and Europe.
According to PVARA, Pakistan’s presence at the forum reflects the country’s rapid movement in digital finance. Pakistan ranks third globally for grassroots crypto adoption on the 2025 Chainalysis Global Crypto Adoption Index, driven by a young mobile-first population, strong freelancer activity and high annual remittances.
The Point Zero Forum, held from June 23 to 25 at Kongresshaus Zürich, brought together more than 2,000 policymakers, regulators and industry leaders.
