Pakistan’s virtual assets regulator requires prior approval for all crypto deals, pilots

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s virtual assets regulator warned financial institutions on Monday that any agreement, memorandum of understanding or pilot program involving virtual assets — including stablecoins used for remittances and cross-border payments — requires its explicit prior authorisation.

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Constitutional Court temporarily restores govt power to inactivate passports and ban deportees from traveling

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Federal Constitutional Court on Monday suspended a Lahore High Court ruling that had struck down key provisions of the Passport Rules 2021, temporarily reinstating the federal government’s authority to deactivate citizens’ passports and impose multiyear travel bans on people deported from abroad or suspected of involvement in human trafficking.

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ECC signals easing inflation pressures, approves Rs5.985 billion to clear PIA dues

ISLAMABAD: The Economic Coordination Committee of the cabinet said on Monday that price increases for essential commodities have slowed after a temporary acceleration, as the government’s top economic panel also approved fresh funding to help clear remaining liabilities at the national airline days before its full handover to private owners.

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Araghchi blames US “excessive demands” for stalled peace talks, consults allies in Pakistan, Oman and Russia

ISLAMABAD: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Russia on Monday after a frantic three-day shuttle through Pakistan and Oman, telling his Russian hosts that Tehran was prepared to resume indirect negotiations with the United States — but only on terms that protect Iran’s core interests in the Persian Gulf and its nuclear program.

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SBP raises rates 100 basis points in first hike in nearly three years as Middle East conflict fuels inflation risks

KARACHI: Pakistan’s central bank lifted its key policy rate by 100 basis points to 11.5% on Monday, delivering its first increase in almost three years as the prolonged Middle East conflict drives up global energy prices and threatens to push inflation higher in the import-dependent economy.

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Pakistan mobilises against HIV surge as Global Fund team prepares possible inspection visit

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s health authorities have ordered urgent reviews of syringe regulations and disease-control programs after reports that a team from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria may soon arrive to examine a sharp rise in HIV infections, including more than 300 cases among children in one southern district linked to the reuse of contaminated syringes.

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