Pakistan and El Salvador sign deal to boost crypto ties

ISLAMABAD: In a first-of-its-kind official engagement, Pakistan’s Minister of State for Crypto and Blockchain, Bilal Bin Saqib, met El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele in San Salvador to discuss Bitcoin and digital asset collaboration.

The meeting marked the first time a Pakistani government representative has held formal talks with El Salvador’s head of state on cryptocurrency policy.

According to a statement from the finance ministry, the discussion centred on El Salvador’s experience as the world’s first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender. The two sides exchanged views on how Pakistan could learn from El Salvador’s journey and apply those insights to its own emerging digital asset framework.

Topics included Bitcoin education, public sector adoption, sovereign digital reserves, and regulation designed to support innovation in developing economies. The two also talked about how blockchain could improve financial inclusion.

A key outcome of the visit was the signing of a Letter of Intent between the Pakistan Crypto Council and El Salvador’s Bitcoin Office. The agreement, signed by Saqib in his capacity as CEO of the council, sets the stage for long-term cooperation on Bitcoin-focused projects.

“This is a strategic partnership built on innovation, inclusion, and learning from global leaders,” said Saqib, calling El Salvador’s Bitcoin initiative a model for countries like Pakistan.

President Bukele welcomed the collaboration and said El Salvador was ready to support Pakistan in exploring Bitcoin’s potential to promote financial sovereignty.

The meeting comes at a time when Pakistan is actively laying the groundwork for its digital asset sector. Earlier this year, the government launched the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) and announced the formation of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve to diversify financial holdings.

Analysts see the engagement as a sign of growing “Biplomacy” — a term combining Bitcoin and diplomacy, as more countries turn to decentralised technologies in shaping their economic futures.

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