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The Pakistani minister acknowledges the country had exited the FATF grey list “with great difficulty” after 6 years, warning that digital transactions can’t be reason for reversal.
If certain level of activity is happening at this scale, it’s only a question of when, not if, that we are going to get into trouble as a country, says Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb.
Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has admitted that the country risks slipping back into the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list if unregulated digital transactions, which is currently being carried out by nearly 15% of the population, are not brought under a proper regulatory regime.
“If certain level of activity is happening and happening at this scale, it’s only a question of when, not if, that we are going to get into trouble as a country, as a sovereign again,” Aurangzeb conceded while speaking at the Leadership Summit on Blockchain and Digital Assets: Technology and Innovation, according to tribune.com.pk.
The minister acknowledged that Pakistan had exited the FATF grey list “with great difficulty” after six years, warning that digital transactions cannot be the reason for a reversal.
The admission once again highlights Pakistan’s fragile financial credibility and its repeated failures to implement international compliance standards.
According to him, over 25 million Pakistanis are engaged in digital businesses. He claimed regulation was necessary to avoid international sanctions.
Digital transactions remain illegal in Pakistan, with the country still dragging its feet on amending laws to formally legalise digital currencies. A proposed ordinance to create a regulator for crypto and digital assets is still awaiting federal cabinet approval.
Aurangzeb said parliamentary committees will soon deliberate on the Virtual Assets Ordinance, which seeks to establish the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA), an autonomous federal body with powers to license, regulate, and supervise entities dealing in virtual assets.
Recently, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has raised serious concerns over Pakistan’s inability to effectively tackle money laundering and corruption, signalling the risk of major consequences if swift action is not taken.
Pakistan’s Troubled FATF History
Pakistan’s track record with FATF has been dismal. It was first placed on the grey list in 2008 for its role in financing terror groups. Since then, it has been repeatedly flagged for failing to curb terror funding and money laundering — issues directly tied to its long-standing policy of supporting cross-border terrorism, including against India.
From June 2018 to October 2022, Pakistan remained on the grey list for over four years, during which its economy suffered from reduced foreign investment, higher borrowing costs, and increased international scrutiny. The country barely managed to exit the list after implementing an action plan under intense global pressure.
India has consistently maintained that Pakistan uses terror financing as a state policy and that FATF scrutiny is essential to hold Islamabad accountable. The latest concerns raised by Aurangzeb only reinforce New Delhi’s position that Pakistan continues to pose risks to global financial stability and security.
Haris is Deputy News Editor (Business) at news18.com. He writes on various issues related to personal finance, markets, economy and companies. Having over a decade of experience in financial journalism, Haris h…Read More
Haris is Deputy News Editor (Business) at news18.com. He writes on various issues related to personal finance, markets, economy and companies. Having over a decade of experience in financial journalism, Haris h… Read More
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