Pakistan, Afghanistan agree to enhance trade and connectivity in push to reset ties

KARACHI: Pakistan’s top blockchain policymaker on Wednesday expressed the country’s ambition to become the Global South’s leader in digital assets during a meeting with his American counterpart at the White House in Washington.

Bilal Bin Saqib, Pakistan’s Minister of State for Crypto & Blockchain and CEO of the Pakistan Crypto Council, met with Robert ‘Bo’ Hines, Executive Director of the US President’s Council of Advisers for Digital Assets. The meeting marked a deepening of bilateral engagement on cryptocurrency strategy and blockchain integration between the two countries.

In March, the administration in Islamabad established the Pakistan Crypto Council to help guide national policy on blockchain, digital currencies and crypto-related investments. This was followed by the government’s announcement of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR) at the Bitcoin 2025 Conference in Las Vegas, making Pakistan one of the first Asian countries to integrate Bitcoin into its sovereign asset strategy.

The government also plans to establish an autonomous regulatory body to oversee the country’s digital finance and crypto ecosystem.

“I envision Pakistan to be a leader in the Global South for digital assets,” Saqib said according to a statement circulated after the meeting. “From launching our Strategic Bitcoin Reserve to unlocking national infrastructure for crypto mining and AI data zones, Pakistan is building a real framework for digital asset adoption and economic modernization.”

During the meeting, both officials discussed aligning national strategies on decentralized technologies, fostering regulatory coherence and building innovation ecosystems to promote youth engagement and financial inclusion.

Bo Hines, appointed in January by President Donald Trump, heads US policy development on digital assets and works alongside Council Chair David Sacks to position the United States as a global leader in the sector.

Saqib also held a separate meeting with officials from the White House Counsel’s Office to discuss legal frameworks around blockchain governance.

Pakistan’s broader digital asset strategy includes allocating 2,000 megawatts of surplus power to support Bitcoin mining and AI-driven data zones, aiming to turn untapped energy into economic productivity, job creation and digital infrastructure growth.

As regulatory frameworks continue to evolve globally, Pakistan says it is taking proactive steps to integrate private sector innovation with state policy and international partnerships, positioning itself as a key player in the next phase of the global digital economy.
 

KARACHI: The Eid Al-Adha festival should be the busiest time of the year at Asia’s largest cattle market in Karachi’s Sohrab Goth area. But soaring prices have driven away many of the people who would usually buy cows and goats to sacrifice on the Muslim holiday.

One of Islam’s two main festivals, Eid Al-Adha marks the climax of the annual Hajj pilgrimage, when Muslims slaughter animals to commemorate the willingness of Prophet Ibrahim, or Abraham, to sacrifice his son on God’s command, often distributing meat to the poor.

But this year, people like Nasir Khan, 25, say higher prices mean they cannot afford to carry out the important ritual.

“I can’t afford it this time,” Khan told Arab News, saying he had opted out of a seven-member group he had been a part of for years, which pooled money to buy sacrificial animals as a collective activity. 

This year, the price of an average-sized cow or bull at the Sohrab Goth market had risen by around 94 percent to Rs330,000 [$1,201], said Abdul Jabbar, another buyer who did not disclose his age or profession and had decided against buying once he discovered the steep prices. 

On a hot afternoon earlier this month, Jabbar strolled through the Karachi market as hundreds of cattle sat idle under makeshift tents. 

“The price trend is very high, almost double from last year,” he said.

“The animal we had bought at Rs 170,000 ($611.51) last year is now up for sale at as much as Rs330,000 ($1,187.05).”

“MEAT EXPORTS”

Inflation in Pakistan peaked as high as 38 percent in May 2023. In May 2025, it rose to 3.5 percent, following a significant drop to 0.3 percent in April. But while food and fuel prices have somewhat decreased, financial experts say the prices of sacrificial animals have gone up, mainly due to increasing meat exports. 

In the fiscal year 2023-24, Pakistan’s meat exports reached a record $512 million, a 20 percent increase from the previous year. This growth was driven by a 24 percent increase in export volume, reaching 123,515 tones. 

While the majority of Pakistan’s meat production is consumed domestically, the country has seen significant growth in exports, particularly to Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Indonesia, and China.

Increasing meat exports reduces the number of cattle available domestically and during Eid Al-Adha season, when demand is seasonal and peaks sharply, supply becomes constrained. 

“Price hike is due to meat exports and inflation in previous years,” Ahsan Mehanti, chief executive officer at Arif Habib Commodities Limited, explained. 

“We have seen that there is a major increase in the export of livestock in the past three years, around more than 50 percent.”

Zaki Abro, a spokesperson for the Sohrab Goth cattle market, attributed the surge in prices to the availability of fewer animals due to thousands being killed in recent floods.

In 2022, Pakistan experienced devastating floods that resulted in the loss of over 1.1 million livestock. This figure includes approximately 500,000 livestock in Balochistan, over 428,000 in Sindh, and over 205,100 in Punjab provinces. 

“On average the prices of small animals have risen by as much as Rs20,000 [$71.94] while the big animals have gone pricier by Rs 70,000 [$251.80],” Abro said. 

“MARKET IS DULL”

The effects of high prices were visible at the Karachi cattle market last week, with few buyers present despite it being spread over an area of around 1,200 acres and 175,000 cattle up for sale. 

Livestock merchants Muhammad Ismail and Obaidullah confirmed a drop in the number of buyers.

“We have a lot of animals still unsold,” Ismail, 26, said. “This could be maybe because of inflation.”

The traders blamed the high rates they were charging on the higher rates they had to pay wholesalers and the cattle market’s administration. The cost of animal feed had also sky-rocketed, they said. Global supply chain disruptions, local market volatility, inflation, and currency devaluation have all contributed to this rise. 

The cost of fodder had surged by nearly 50 percent, impacting cattle farming, merchants said. 

“Our eight to nine months farming cost for each of these animals this year increased to Rs250,000 [$899.28] from Rs150,000 [$539.57] a year ago,” Ismail explained. 

Trader Obaidullah said sellers also had to pay a fee of Rs30,000 [$107.91] per animal to the cattle market authorities. 

“Last year the market performed well,” Ismail added. 

“All of our animals had sold out. More than half of the market had emptied by this time last year. This year the market is dull.”