Concerns regarding Pakistan's Bitcoin (BTC) mining plan

As part of the ongoing negotiations on the country's extended financial program, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has expressed concerns about Pakistan's decision to provide 2,000 megawatts of electricity for Bitcoin mining and AI data centers.

The initiative, the last week was announcedis supposed to attract autonomous miners, blockchain companies and AI companies to Pakistan.

However, the IMF has expressed concerns and asked the Ministry of Finance for an urgent clarification of the legality of crypto mining and electricity allocations, especially since the country has to struggle with chronic lack of energy and fiscal pressure, so A report by the local news agency Samaa.

According to the report, the IMF was not consulted before the announcement and questions the legal status of cryptocurrencies in Pakistan. The fund has also expressed concerns about possible effects on electricity prices and the distribution of resources.

“It is feared that the IMF will have further tough talks about this initiative,” said a civil servant involved in the negotiations. “The business team is already faced with hard questions, and this step has only made the conversations more complicated.

IWF plans a special meeting for the Bitcoin mining plan

It is expected that the IMF delegation, which currently has virtual discussions with Pakistani officials, is scheduled to schedule a separate session, which is with the government's plan for the Bitcoin (BTC) -Mining and AI operations.

The electricity allocation is part of a more comprehensive national strategy for integrating digital assets into the Pakistani economy. An important part of this plan is to set up the Pakistan Digital Asset Authority (PDAA), which was approved by the Ministry of Finance on May 21.

The PDAA will regulate stock exchanges, wallets, stable coins and defi platforms and at the same time supervise the tokenization of national assets in harmony with international framework works such as those of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

The development follows Pakistan's public debut of its first strategic Bitcoin-Reserve At Bitcoin Vegas 2025 last week. This signaled Islamabad's swivel in the direction of digital finances.

During the conference, Bilal bin Saqib, crypto consultant by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, announced the introduction of a national Bitcoin wallet and the commitment of the government to support digital assets.

Pakistan signals a new approach for crypto sector

The Pakistani government changed its attitude to cryptocurrencies at the beginning of the year and in February 2025 a “national cryptorate” proposed.

The committee was commissioned to design a comprehensive framework for digital assets and to attract foreign investments in the country's growing crypto ecosystem.

The first proposals of the council included the Use of excess energy for Bitcoin mining and the operation of data centers as well as the establishment of a national Bitcoin reserve.