Pakistan cleric declares crypto haram as government pushes regulation

Karachi,UPDATED: Jul 11, 2026 17:40 IST

A leading Pakistani cleric has issued a "fatwa" against trading in cryptocurrencies, declaring it "haram" under Islamic law, even as the government moves to regulate and promote the virtual assets sector in the country.

The ruling was issued by Islamic scholar Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani and made public by Darul Uloom Karachi, one of Pakistan's most respected Sunni Islamic seminaries. While a fatwa is a religious opinion and is not legally binding, it could shape how many Muslims in Pakistan view cryptocurrency trading and investment.

According to the seminary, the fatwa has also been endorsed by several other Islamic scholars. It covers cryptocurrencies, crypto tokens and stablecoins, and says such digital assets do not meet the Islamic definition of wealth or property, making their buying and selling impermissible under Shariah. The ruling also says that terms such as cryptocurrency, virtual currency, token and stablecoin refer to the same category of digital assets, and that changing the terminology does not alter the religious ruling.

The ruling therefore applies not only to cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, but also to blockchain-based tokens and stablecoins, including USDT (Tether). It comes at a time when Pakistan has been actively encouraging the development of the cryptocurrency sector. Last year, the government announced the establishment of the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority to license cryptocurrency exchanges and integrate blockchain technology into the country's financial framework. It has also unveiled a regulatory framework for virtual assets, paving the way for a licensed crypto industry.

In effect, the cleric's ruling places a religious objection to cryptocurrency trading at a time when Pakistan is building a formal framework for virtual assets, with the fatwa extending across cryptocurrencies, tokens and stablecoins.

With PTI Inputs

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