Pakistan's Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority Opens Licensing Portal, Existing Service Providers Must Apply for NOC by September 5

Odaily News - The Pakistan Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (PVARA) has opened its licensing portal. Enterprises that provided virtual asset services on or before March 5 must apply for a No Objection Certificate (NOC) by September 5, or cease operations; continuing to operate without submitting an application after the deadline will constitute a violation of the law.

The new regulations cover exchange, custody, broker-dealer, lending, derivatives, asset management, token issuance, and mining-related services. Service providers may first apply for an NOC, or enter PVARA's regulatory sandbox to test products before applying for a full license.

Licensed institutions must segregate client assets from their own assets, and may not lend or stake customer assets without written consent, while also meeting requirements for governance, market conduct, cybersecurity, operational resilience, and anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing measures. PVARA has already issued NOCs to enterprises such as Binance and HTX. (Cointelegraph)