Pakistan Prepares Trial Run for Digital Currency
Pakistan is stepping into the world of digital currencies with an upcoming trial of its own central bank digital currency (CBDC), signaling a major step toward financial modernization.
The initiative, led by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), was confirmed by Governor Jameel Ahmad during the Reuters NEXT Asia summit in Singapore.
As part of this move, the SBP is actively preparing for a pilot program to test how a digital version of the Pakistani rupee could function within the financial system. This places Pakistan among a growing number of countries exploring blockchain-backed currencies through limited and controlled rollouts.
In addition to the CBDC pilot, the SBP is working on finalizing legislation aimed at regulating the broader digital asset space. The forthcoming legal framework will establish licensing and compliance standards for virtual asset service providers, offering clearer rules for crypto-related activities in the country.
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Governor Ahmad emphasized that while the government is eager to harness the benefits of digital innovation, it remains cautious of the risks. The goal is to strike a balance between encouraging progress and ensuring financial stability.
This development follows the formation of the Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC) earlier this year—a government-supported initiative created to promote the responsible growth of the virtual asset industry. With these efforts, Pakistan aims to update its financial infrastructure and align itself with global digital currency trends.
Alex is Editor-in-Chief of Coindoo and co-founder of Millennial Media Group, with nearly a decade of experience covering financial markets - crypto first, then everything else. It started in 2016 with Bitcoin. Like most people at the time, he didn't fully understand it - so he kept digging. Blockchain, tokenomics, the projects, the cycles. That curiosity never stopped, and eventually pulled him into traditional markets too: equities, commodities, macro. Not because he left crypto behind, but because you can't properly understand one without the other. What drives him is straightforward: he wants to know why something is happening, not just that it's happening. Most market coverage stops at the headline - price up, price down, here's a chart. Alex finds that kind of reporting actively unhelpful. If you walk away from an article without understanding the mechanism behind the move, what did you actually learn? He holds a degree in Tourism from New Bulgarian University - not the most obvious path into financial markets, but markets have a way of pulling in people who are simply too curious to stay out. He has authored over 200 in-depth analyses and more than 10,000 articles across crypto and traditional finance. He still thinks every day in markets teaches him something new. That's probably why he hasn't stopped.
