ISLAMABAD: The Upper House of the Parliament has passed the Virtual Assets Bill, 2025, a government legislative draft that provides for establishing a regulatory authority for the licencing, regulation, and supervision of virtual assets and their services providers across the country.
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb presented the bill in the Senate session presided over by Chairman Yousaf Raza Gilani on Friday.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Senate’s Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat had nodded its approval to this bill.
The Section 6 of the Virtual Assets Bill, 2025 provides for the establishment of the Pakistan Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority, an autonomous corporate body empowered to licence, regulate and supervise virtual asset service providers in Pakistan.
In accordance with the bill, the authority would also be empowered to “protect customers and investors dealing in virtual assets by establishing and enforcing appropriate safeguards and conduct of business requirements.”
The Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Virtual Assets Bill, 2025 reads that the virtual assets, “being an evolving component of the modern financial ecosystem, necessitate a dedicated regulatory authority for licencing and supervision of virtual asset service providers, with the aim to ensure investor protection, transparency and market integrity.”
The authority will ensure investor protection, foster innovation, and promote transparency in the virtual asset market, reads the Statement of Objects and Reasons.
This authority will create an enabling environment for safe trading, prevent illegal activities like money laundering and fraud, and enhance global competitiveness, the statement added.
“Therefore, a corresponding legal framework, empowering the authority, is also required to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and other illicit activities while promoting innovation, financial inclusion, economic growth and development of Shariah compliant virtual asset services aligned with international standards,” reads the statement.
Another government bill; the Daanish University Islamabad Bill, 2026, was moved in the Senate by Law Minister Azam Tarar, on behalf of Education Minister Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui. The bill was referred to the relevant standing committee.
Apart from that, Tarar informed the House that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) recovered an amount of 11.565 trillion rupees in various cases in five years.
Relatedly, a written reply shared by the Law minister in the Senate question hour revealed that out of Rs 11.565 trillion, Rs 10,982,000 million under state land recoveries, Rs 479,261.44 million under miscellaneous recoveries, Rs 38,0024.29 million under settlement, Rs 65,883.09 million under plea bargain, and Rs 108.80 million under voluntary return were recovered from the year 2021 till 2025. In terms of millions, the total recovered amount is Rs 11,565,257.62, revealed the written reply.
Power Minister Awais Leghari informed the Senate in the question hour that the losses of distribution companies were reduced from Rs 586 billion to Rs 397 billion in one year. The latest technology is being introduced to improve the efficiency of the power sector, he said.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry informed the House that new gas discoveries have been made in the country, which, he claimed, will significantly contribute to meeting domestic gas requirements.
Copyright media, 2026
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