2 min read
Former finance minister Asad Umar has raised concerns over the government’s decision to partner with Binance for a $2 billion asset tokenisation initiative, questioning whether global financial giants were invited to participate and calling for transparency at a crucial moment for Pakistan’s digital finance future.
Pakistan has recently accelerated efforts to regulate and integrate digital assets into its financial system through a new virtual assets framework. As part of this push, early regulatory approvals have been granted to international crypto exchanges, alongside plans to tokenize state-owned assets using blockchain technology.
In a post on X, Asad Umar questioned how Binance was selected for the asset tokenisation project, asking,
“What process was used to select Binance?”
He noted that Pakistan’s first real-world asset tokenisation deal would be critical for long-term credibility and stressed that decisions of this scale must follow a transparent and competitive process.
Umar also asked whether established global financial institutions such as BlackRock, UBS, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and HSBC were consulted or invited, adding that credibility and experience should be central to such initiatives.
On Friday, authorities confirmed that Binance and HTX had received preliminary regulatory approvals under Pakistan’s virtual assets regime, allowing them to register locally and proceed toward full licensing under anti-money laundering rules. At the same time, the Ministry of Finance signed an MoU with Binance to explore tokenisation of government-owned assets including sovereign bonds, treasury bills, and commodity reserves.
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb described the move as part of Pakistan’s reform momentum, while Binance founder Changpeng Zhao said the agreement reflects Pakistan’s ambition to play a larger role in the global digital asset ecosystem.
Officials say the initiative aligns with Pakistan’s broader digital finance roadmap, which includes the Pakistan Crypto Council, a Virtual Assets Act planned for 2025, and a potential central bank digital currency pilot.
