Pakistan must move beyond consuming financial technologies developed in other markets and become an active contributor to the infrastructure, standards and innovation shaping global finance, Minister of State and Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) Chairman Bilal Bin Saqib has said. Speaking at the Pakistan Banks Association–Lahore University of Management Sciences (PBA–LUMS) Dialogue on Digital Assets and the Future of Banking, he urged the banking industry to recognise the opportunities emerging from digital assets, tokenization and artificial intelligence. He made the remarks during a fireside conversation titled “Partner, Competitor, or Bystander?” with Pakistan Banks Association Chairman and Bank of Punjab President and CEO Zafar Masud. Bilal Bin Saqib said Bitcoin had introduced the wider public to digital assets, but the underlying technology was creating broader changes in how value moves, financial assets are held and capital reaches businesses. He referred to developments at international financial institutions, including JPMorgan, HSBC and Standard Chartered, where digital assets are increasingly being incorporated into institutional payments, treasury management and capital markets. He argued that Pakistan’s opportunity lies not simply in giving people more assets to trade, but in creating an environment where they can develop businesses, build assets and generate wealth through locally developed financial technology.
The PVARA chairman highlighted Pakistan’s annual remittance inflows of approximately $41.6 billion and said reducing international transfer costs should be an important consideration for the banking sector. He identified supervised, bank-led payment arrangements involving major Gulf remittance corridors as an opportunity worth examining, subject to regulatory coordination and appropriate safeguards. More efficient financial infrastructure, he said, could help ensure that a greater share of overseas Pakistanis’ money reaches their families. He also urged bank presidents to establish deeper partnerships with universities, researchers, engineers and emerging technology companies. According to Bilal Bin Saqib, banks should move beyond acting as customers of innovation and become platforms that support the development of local technology businesses. Financial institutions could provide Pakistani founders with access to real business challenges, technical expertise, mentorship and opportunities to test their solutions within appropriate safeguards. He suggested that if major Pakistani banks helped incubate the next generation of fintech companies, the country could develop businesses capable of exporting technology instead of relying primarily on imported solutions. Such collaboration could connect financial institutions with local talent and give emerging companies opportunities to develop products around practical banking and financial services requirements.
Artificial intelligence was another major area highlighted during the discussion. Bilal Bin Saqib said AI is changing how financial services are developed, delivered and secured, with applications in fraud detection, risk management, customer service, software engineering and operational efficiency. He encouraged banks to invest in AI capabilities, develop the skills of their existing workforce and strengthen collaboration with universities such as LUMS. He also noted that AI is changing what smaller teams can build, while new financial infrastructure is creating additional ways for those teams to reach customers, capital and international markets. Bringing these developments together, he said, could help Pakistan develop a stronger position in the global financial technology sector. The chairman stressed that technological independence does not require the country to replicate every international payment network or financial system. Instead, Pakistan needs to develop the talent, institutions and technological capabilities required to shape the systems on which its economy depends. Digital assets, tokenization and AI could provide opportunities to participate earlier in the development of new financial capabilities, provided local institutions and businesses are prepared to contribute.
Bilal Bin Saqib also emphasised coordination between PVARA, the State Bank of Pakistan and other relevant regulatory institutions within their respective statutory mandates. He said the adoption of emerging technologies must be accompanied by effective supervision, cybersecurity safeguards, consumer protection and institutional accountability. Addressing students and young professionals at LUMS, he referred to his involvement in digital assets since 2016 and encouraged the next generation to develop globally competitive financial technology companies. He questioned why the next major international fintech company could not emerge from Lahore, Karachi or Islamabad, supported by Pakistani banks and employing local engineers. He said the country’s progress should be measured through tangible economic outcomes rather than the number of events held, memorandums of understanding signed or announcements made. The relevant measures, in his view, include the growth of Pakistani businesses, the financial problems solved through technology and the capabilities developed within the country. He concluded that Pakistan has an opportunity to help build the next generation of financial systems rather than remain dependent on technologies created elsewhere.
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