KARACHI: A proposal to leverage surplus electricity for bitcoin mining was floated at the inaugural meeting of the Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC) on Friday, according to a statement by the Finance Division, as members of the newly established body vowed to open a new digital economy chapter in the country’s history.
The PCC was officially launched on March 15 to explore the integration of crypto and blockchain technologies into Pakistan’s financial ecosystem and draft a regulatory framework for the sector. Its formation marked a significant shift for the country that was once reluctant to embrace cryptocurrencies due to regulatory and security concerns.
The council’s first meeting was presided over by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and attended by senior officials, including the governor of the State Bank, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and the federal IT and law secretaries.
“The meeting focused on Pakistan’s untapped potential in the crypto space, with [PCC] CEO Bilal Bin Saqib presenting a comprehensive vision and mission for the Council,” the statement said.
“Saqib emphasized the importance of regulatory models and use cases, particularly in the region, that could be tailored to Pakistan’s unique context,” it added. “He also presented the concept of leveraging Pakistan’s surplus electricity for Bitcoin mining, potentially turning the country’s liabilities into assets.”
Bitcoin mining is the process by which new bitcoins are created and transactions verified through complex mathematical computations that require powerful, energy-intensive computers.
Pakistan’s surplus electricity, which often goes unused due to low demand or inadequate infrastructure, could be redirected to power these mining operations, according to the proposal, and generate revenue from otherwise wasted energy.
Finance Minister Aurangzeb praised the council’s vision and underlined its strategic importance for Pakistan’s digital transformation.
“This is the beginning of a new digital chapter for our economy,” he said. “We are committed to building a transparent, future-ready financial ecosystem that attracts investment, empowers our youth and puts Pakistan on the global map as a leader in emerging technologies.”
Aurangzeb noted that while Pakistan should learn from global best practices, it must develop business and revenue models grounded in local realities.
He called for building on previous work by various stakeholders to ensure the country doesn’t start from scratch.
Other council members highlighted the need for regulatory clarity, consumer protection, licensing regimes and a national blockchain policy. They also stressed the importance of sequencing the rollout, running pilot programs and ensuring compliance with international obligations.
Pakistan floats bitcoin mining proposal using surplus electricity at first crypto council meeting
https://arab.news/ccqyq
Pakistan floats bitcoin mining proposal using surplus electricity at first crypto council meeting
- The council was officially launched this month to integrate crypto technologies into Pakistan’s financial system
- The country’s finance chief emphasizes the need for a future-ready financial ecosystem that attracts investment
Pakistani politicians urge dialogue with Imran Khan’s party as PM offers talks
- National Dialogue Committee group organizes summit attended by prominent lawyers, politicians and journalists in Islamabad
- Participants urge government to lift alleged ban on political activities and media restrictions, form committee for negotiations
ISLAMABAD: Participants of a meeting featuring prominent politicians, lawyers and civil society members on Wednesday urged the government to initiate talks with former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, lift alleged bans on political activities after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif recently invited the PTI for talks.
The summit was organized by the National Dialogue Committee (NDC), a political group formed last month by former PTI members Chaudhry Fawad Husain, ex-Sindh governor Imran Ismail and Mehmood Moulvi. The NDC has called for efforts to ease political tensions in the country and facilitate dialogue between the government and Khan’s party.
The development takes place amid rising tensions between the PTI and Pakistan’s military and government. Khan, who remains in jail on a slew of charges he says are politically motivated, blames the military and the government for colluding to keep him away from power by rigging the 2024 general election and implicating him in false cases. Both deny his allegations.
Since Khan was ousted in a parliamentary vote in April 2022, the PTI has complained of a widespread state crackdown, while Khan and his senior party colleagues have been embroiled in dozens of legal cases. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif last month invited the PTI for talks during a meeting of the federal cabinet, saying harmony among political forces was essential for the country’s progress.
“The prime objective of the dialogue is that we want to bring the political temperatures down,” Ismail told Arab News after the conference concluded.
“At the moment, the heat is so much that people— especially in politics— they do not want to sit across the table and discuss the pertaining issues of Pakistan which is blocking the way for investment.”
Former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, who heads the Awaam Pakistan political party, attended the summit along with Jamaat-e-Islami senior leader Liaquat Baloch, Muttahida Quami Movement-Pakistan’s Waseem Akhtar and Haroon Ur Rashid, president of the Supreme Court Bar Association. Journalists Asma Shirazi and Fahd Husain also attended the meeting.
Members of the Pakistan Peoples Party, the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the PTI did not attend the gathering.
The NDC urged Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, President Asif Ali Zardari and PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif to initiate talks with the opposition. It said after the government forms its team, the NDC will announce the names of the opposition negotiating team after holding consultations with its jailed members.
“Let us create some environment. Let us bring some temperatures down and then we will do it,” Ismail said regarding a potential meeting with the jailed Khan.
Muhammad Ali Saif, a former adviser to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister, told participants of the meeting that Pakistan was currently in a “dysfunctional state” due to extreme political polarization.
“The tension between the PTI and the institutions, particularly the army, at the moment is the most fundamental, the most prominent and the most crucial issue,” Saif noted.
‘CHANGED FACES’
The summit proposed six specific confidence-building measures. These included lifting an alleged ban on political activities and the appointment of the leaders of opposition in Pakistan’s Senate and National Assembly.
The joint communique called for the immediate release of women political prisoners, such as Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi and PTI leader Yasmin Rashid, and the withdrawal of cases against supporters of political parties.
The communiqué also called for an end to media censorship and proposed that the government and opposition should “neither use the Pakistan Armed Forces for their politics nor engage in negative propaganda against them.”
Amir Khan, an overseas Pakistani businessperson, complained that frequent political changes in the country had undermined investors’ confidence.
“I came here with investment ideas, I came to know that faces have changed after a year,” Amir Khan said, referring to the frequent change in government personnel.
Khan’s party, on the other hand, has been calling for a “meaningful” political dialogue with the government.
However, it has accused the government of denying PTI members meetings with Khan in the Rawalpindi prison where he remains incarcerated.
“For dialogue to be meaningful, it is essential that these authorized representatives are allowed regular and unhindered access to Imran Khan so that any engagement accurately reflects his views and PTI’s collective position,” PTI leader Azhar Leghari told Arab News last week.
