KARACHI: Pakistani police said Tuesday that at least 13 people were killed when a building collapsed in the southern port city of Karachi the previous day.
Only one body was initially recovered when the building collapsed, said senior police officer Altaf Hussain. Police said on Tuesday that the death toll rose to 13 after rescuers carefully removed the rubble to find more victims trapped underneath.
Most of the apartments were empty as the building was recently ordered vacated as it was declared unsafe in March, after cracks emerged on the walls, Hussain said. Rescuers said the collapse happened when some of the residents went in to retrieve their belongings.
Among the victims were seven men, five women and a girl, Hussain said. He added that at least six people were injured in the incident and speculated there may be more trapped beneath the rubble.
Building collapses are common in Pakistan as many are poorly constructed with cheap building materials and safety guidelines are ignored to cut costs.
Also in Karachi, a multistory building that was undergoing additional constructions and expansion, collapsed in March, killing at least 11 people, including women and children.
Pakistan: Building collapse in Karachi kills 13 people
https://arab.news/r5qtj
Pakistan: Building collapse in Karachi kills 13 people
- Among the victims were seven men, five women and a girl
- Most of the apartments were empty as the building was recently ordered vacated after declared unsafe
Pakistan, global crypto exchange discuss modernizing digital payments, creating job prospects
- Pakistani officials, Binance team discuss coordination between Islamabad, local banks and global exchanges
- Pakistan has attempted to tap into growing crypto market to curb illicit transactions, improve oversight
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s finance officials and the team of a global cryptocurrency exchange on Friday held discussions aimed at modernizing the country’s digital payments system and building local talent pipelines to meet rising demand for blockchain and Web3 skills, the finance ministry said.
The development took place during a high-level meeting between Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) Chairman Bilal bin Saqib, domestic bank presidents and a Binance team led by Global CEO Richard Teng. The meeting was held to advance work on Pakistan’s National Digital Asset Framework, a regulatory setup to govern Pakistan’s digital assets.
Pakistan has been moving to regulate its fast-growing crypto and digital assets market by bringing virtual asset service providers (VASPs) under a formal licensing regime. Officials say the push is aimed at curbing illicit transactions, improving oversight, and encouraging innovation in blockchain-based financial services.
“Participants reviewed opportunities to modernize Pakistan’s digital payments landscape, noting that blockchain-based systems could significantly reduce costs from the country’s $38 billion annual remittance flows,” the finance ministry said in a statement.
“Discussions also emphasized building local talent pipelines to meet rising global demand for blockchain and Web3 skills, creating high-value employment prospects for Pakistani youth.”
Blockchain is a type of digital database that is shared, transparent and tamper-resistant. Instead of being stored on one computer, the data is kept on a distributed network of computers, making it very hard to alter or hack.
Web3 refers to the next generation of the Internet built using blockchain, focusing on giving users more control over their data, identity and digital assets rather than big tech companies controlling it.
Participants of the meeting also discussed sovereign debt tokenization, which is the process of converting a country’s debt such as government bonds, into digital tokens on a blockchain, the ministry said.
Aurangzeb called for close coordination between the government, domestic banks and global exchanges to modernize Pakistan’s payment landscape.
Participants of the meeting also discussed considering a “time-bound amnesty” to encourage users to move assets onto regulated platforms, stressing the need for stronger verifications and a risk-mitigation system.
Pakistan has attempted in recent months to tap into the country’s growing crypto market, crack down on money laundering and terror financing, and promote responsible innovation — a move analysts say could bring an estimated $25 billion in virtual assets into the tax net.
In September, Islamabad invited international crypto exchanges and other VASPs to apply for licenses to operate in the country, a step aimed at formalizing and regulating its fast-growing digital market.
