Mufti Taqi Usmani | Pakistan

Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) Chairman Bilal bin Saqib on Saturday said he held a “constructive discussion” with religious scholar Mufti Taqi Usmani on the Shariah status of digital assets. Their meeting comes after it surfaced that Mufti Usmani and six others had declared purchasing goods with cryptocurrency “impermissible” in a fatwa (religious decree) issued on June 10. It described cryptocurrency as “merely the recording of fictitious numbers in an account”. Subsequently, Saqib — who has been leading Pakistan’s efforts to adopt cryptocurrency since early 2025 — posted on X: “Today, I had a constructive discussion with Mufti Taqi Usmani sahib on digital assets and the ongoing conversation around their Shariah status.” “We are united on one fundamental objective: protecting Pakistanis from fraud, exploitation, and financial harm.” The crypto czar said he shared with Mufti Usmani that “blockchain, digital assets, stablecoins, and tokenised real-world assets represent a broad spectrum o...

Renowned Islamic scholar Mufti Taqi Usmani has declared purchasing goods with cryptocurrency “impermissible”, citing research conducted by experts so far which found that cryptocurrency does not qualify as “wealth”, it emerged on Friday. The fatwa was originally issued by Darul Ifta, Jamia Darul Uloom, Karachi, and dated 24 Zilhaj 1447 AH (June 10, 2026). Apart from Mufti Usmani, a former judge of the Federal Shariat Court, five other prominent scholars are its signatories. Responding to a question about purchasing books with cryptocurrency, the fatwa said: “It is not permissible for you to purchase the books in question using cryptocurrency.” “According to research and opinion of experts so far, cryptocurrency is not considered ‘maal’ (wealth) in Sharia. Instead, it is merely the recording of fictitious numbers in an account, whether in the form of USDT or other crypto tokens,” it stated. As cryptocurrency was not recognised as wealth, the fatwa maintained that the buyer did not technically become the owner ...