Pakistan Opens Crypto Licensing Regime, Sets September 5 NOC Deadline

The Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) has opened its application portal for No Objection Certificates (NOCs), full VASP licenses and a regulatory sandbox. Under Section 70 of the Virtual Assets Act, 2026, firms that provided virtual asset services on or before March 5, 2026 count as transitional persons and must submit an NOC application by September 5. PVARA has said that operating after that date without an application on file is an offense. Unlicensed crypto operations face fines of up to PKR 50 million (USD 180 K) or imprisonment of up to 5 years.

Firms entering the market now do not face the deadline and can apply through the NOC route or the sandbox.

The NOC is a preliminary approval rather than a license, and the September 5 filing calls for a business plan and corporate documents. The remaining obligations follow a fixed order: PVARA issues the NOC; a firm then registers with the Financial Monitoring Unit, completes other regulatory requirements, incorporates a subsidiary under the Companies Act 2017, and submits its license application. Offshore exchanges with Pakistani users therefore need a local entity to continue, though not before the September deadline.

PVARA has already issued preliminary NOCs to Binance and HTX, clearing both to incorporate locally and move toward full licenses.

The framework covers advisory, broker-dealer, custody, derivatives, discretionary management and investment, exchange, lending and borrowing, mining-related services, token issuance, and transfer and settlement. An applicant may hold more than one license category.

Applicants must also satisfy conditions including local incorporation, minimum capital thresholds, fit-and-proper tests for senior personnel, customer due diligence, transaction monitoring, and suspicious activity reporting, as well as a cybersecurity framework and a business continuity plan.

Licensed providers must keep customer holdings separate from their own assets and cannot lend or pledge them without written consent. PVARA has framed those as legal obligations rather than voluntary commitments. Approval gives firms access to Pakistan’s formal banking system.

PVARA Chairman Bilal bin Saqib said in a televised address on August 22 that the framework gives Pakistani and global businesses a "legal front door" and brings the sector under the rule of law. He described a market that had operated outside any regulatory framework despite millions of participants.

The licensing regime is one part of a broader push to formalize the digital asset sector. In July, the Federal Investigation Agency established a cryptocurrency investigation unit inside its National Command and Control Centre to combat money laundering and terrorist financing through virtual currencies, with PVARA retaining responsibility for regulation.

Suggested read: Crypto in Pakistan 2026: What’s Legal, What’s Risky, and What’s Next?