US lawmakers are proposing a tax exemption for stablecoin payments of up to $200 and a multi-year deferral option for crypto staking and mining rewards. US lawmakers have introduced a discussion draft that would ease the tax burden on everyday crypto users by exempting small stablecoin transactions from capital gains taxes and offering a new deferral option for staking and mining rewards. The proposal, introduced by Representatives Max Miller of Ohio and Steven Horsford of Nevada, seeks to amend the Internal Revenue Code to reflect the growing use of digital assets in payments. The draft is set “to eliminate low-value gain recognition arising from routine consumer payment use of regulated payment stablecoins,” per the draft. Under the draft, users would not be required to recognize gains or losses on stablecoin transactions of up to $200, provided the asset is issued by a permitted issuer under the GENIUS Act, pegged to the US dollar and maintains a tight trading range around $1. Read more
As fog engulfed several areas of Karachi on Sunday morning and the city experienced “very unhealthy” weather conditions, flight disruptions and one road accident death were reported. Low visibility due to fog was reported from Super Highway, Surjani Town, Gulistan-i-Jauhar, I.I. Chundrigarh Road, Clifton and Defence. Updates on the Karachi airport’s website showed that multiple flights were cancelled or delayed in the morning. Pakistan Airports Authority spokesperson Saifullah Khan confirmed in a statement that six international flights scheduled to land in Karachi had to be diverted due to fog. The statement said that the diversion was a usual safety measure taken due to reduced visibility. It added that Pegasus Airlines, Eitehad Airways, Flyadeal and Gulf Air flights had been diverted to Muscat. Moreover, a Pakistan International Airlines flight that had departed from Madina, too, had to be divered to Muscat. Similarly, Fly Jinnah flight arriving from Jeddah was diverted to Islamabad. According to the Pakis...
Illustration by Abro George Orwell’s classic novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, published in 1949, explores a fictional totalitarian regime that maintains absolute power by dismantling individual thought, memory and personal connection. Orwell wrote the novel after witnessing the rise of fascism in Germany and, especially, the Stalinist system in the Soviet Union. A self-described socialist, Orwell fought against fascists in the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). But he critically differentiated between ‘democratic-socialism’ and the communism practised in the Soviet Union. By the time Nineteen Eighty-Four was published, totalitarianism in Germany had fallen, but Stalinism persisted. Orwell was particularly disturbed by the Soviet Union’s trajectory, having already satirised it in his 1945 allegory Animal Farm. In Nineteen Eighty-Four, he presented a warning about communism’s potential to create a terrifying dystopia. The term ‘Orwellian’ quickly entered political discourse as a universal descriptor for state overreach, t...
Industry supporters said crypto "would not be where it is today" without US Senator Cynthia Lummis, who announced she would not seek reelection next year. The crypto industry has rallied in support of pro-crypto US Senator Cynthia Lummis after she announced she will not seek reelection in 2026. Lummis, who is a vocal advocate for digital assets, played a significant role in US crypto policy discussions over the past few years and earned widespread respect across the crypto industry. Venture capital firm a16z head of government affairs, Collin McCune, said in an X post on Friday that “crypto would not be where it is today without her fight in the Congress.” Read more
Kinno grading in process at a plant in Sargodha.—Photo by the writer LAHORE: Despite being among the world’s largest producers of citrua, Pakistan is set to export only 400,000-450,000 tonnes of kinno during the 2025-26 season, well below its estimated potential of 700,000-800,000 tonnes, as growers and exporters struggle with high freight costs, border restrictions and the absence of effective government facilitation. During the 2024-25 season, kinno exports stood at around 350,000-400,000 tonnes, with Russia, Indonesia, the UAE, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia and Central Asian states as major destinations. For the current season, a slight improvement is expected due to better fruit size and quality in Sargodha and adjoining areas, but structural issues continue to cap growth. Former MPA and large kinno orchard owner Faisal Cheema said the crisis has deepened despite an excellent crop. “By the grace of God, this year’s kinno crop is outstanding in both quantity and quality, but it has become a pattern that whenev...