In a serious win for Pakistan’s cryptocurrency market, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), the co-founder and former CEO of Binance, the world’s largest crypto trade, has been appointed as a strategic adviser to the Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC).
Binance Co-Founder To Increase Crypto Innovation
The announcement was made by the finance ministry on Monday, following Zhao’s conferences with key PCC members, together with Federal Minister for Finance Muhammad Aurangzeb, who chairs the council, and CEO Bilal Bin Saqib.
In keeping with native media experiences, Changpeng Zhao additionally held discussions with the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of Pakistan throughout his go to to Islamabad over the weekend.
The PCC, established by the federal government simply final month, goals to create a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency buying and selling, a transfer supposed to draw worldwide funding.
Though cryptocurrencies resembling Bitcoin (BTC) aren’t formally regulated in Pakistan, they don’t seem to be unlawful both. Since January 16, 2021, the State Financial institution of Pakistan has not approved any entities to conduct transactions involving digital currencies, cash, or tokens.
“This can be a landmark second for Pakistan; we’re sending a transparent message to the world: Pakistan is open for innovation,” Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb said throughout the announcement.
The Senator emphasised that with Binance’s former CEO on board, the council goals to speed up its imaginative and prescient of positioning Pakistan as a regional chief in Web3, digital finance, and blockchain expertise.
Zhao’s Imaginative and prescient For Pakistan
As a strategic adviser, Zhao will reportedly present key steerage on numerous features, together with regulation, infrastructure improvement, training, and the adoption of cryptocurrencies.
His function will contain shut collaboration with each the Pakistani authorities and the personal sector to create a compliant, inclusive, and globally aggressive crypto ecosystem.
Zhao highlighted the potential of Pakistan by way of cryptocurrency development, stating, “Pakistan is a rustic of 240 million individuals, over 60 % of whom are below the age of 30. The potential right here is limitless.”
Regardless of his current authorized challenges—having stepped down as Binance CEO and reached a $4.3 billion settlement with US authorities over anti-money laundering violations—Zhao stays one of the crucial influential figures within the crypto business.
As of January 2025, Forbes estimates his internet price at roughly $66.6 billion, making him the second-richest Canadian and the twenty fourth richest particular person on the earth.
Zhao’s profession in cryptocurrency started in 2013 as a part of the group that developed Blockchain.data. He later served as Chief Expertise Officer for OKCoin earlier than launching Binance in July 2017.
Inside simply eight months, Binance turned the world’s largest cryptocurrency trade by buying and selling quantity, a feat achieved after elevating $15 million by way of an preliminary coin providing (ICO).
As of now, Binance Coin (BNB), trades at $564, recording an 11% value drop over the previous two weeks.
Featured picture from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com
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