Pakistani province to pilot crypto mining farms

The Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will build two pilot cryptocurrency mining firms as part of a new state policy.

The Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, or KP, has formed a federal committee to create a new cryptocurrency policy including government-backed crypto mining.

As part of the new policy, the KP Crypto Advisory Committee has already decided to pilot two hydroelectric-powered crypto mining farms, a minister overseeing the policy told Reuters.

The committee held its first meeting on March 17, Zia Ullah Bangash, advisor to the provincial government on science and technology announced on Twitter. “The KP Government on the directions and guidance of chief minister Mahmood Khan is taking serious steps regarding cryptocurrency and mining. We’re consulting with all stakeholders and experts for this initiative,” Bangash wrote.

The KP Crypto Advisory Committee was formed in order to review and discuss “necessary steps to regulate, legalise, and necessary legislation.” Local crypto advocate and influencer Waqar Zaka apparently played a significant role in setting up the committee, claiming that he was the one who convinced the local government to launch the initiative. “I’m thankful to Waqar Zaka for his full cooperation and support to the KP government,” Bangash said.

According to local reports, the KP is the first of four provinces in Pakistan to launch an advisory committee focused on crypto and mining. The province has been urging the central government to legalize crypto, going so far as to pass a resolution in December 2020 that demanded legislative action on a federal level.

The State Bank of Pakistan banned crypto in the country in 2018, declaring that cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) were not legal tender. Despite the years of an official ban, Pakistan residents apparently did not stop investing in crypto. “It’s really just our government that is not participating right now, people all over Pakistan are already working on this, either mining or trading in cryptocurrencies and they are earning an income from it,” Bangash said.