Pakistan’s Bilal Bin Saqib Meets El Salvador’s President Bukele
Pakistan’s head of its Crypto Council, Bilal Bin Saqib, also serving as a special assistant to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, met El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele in San Salvador on Thursday to explore knowledge-sharing opportunities regarding the implementation of the digital asset economy.
Bilal Bin Saqib described the El Salvadoran leader as “one of the most extraordinary visionary leaders of our time,” citing Bukele’s unwavering conviction in backing Bitcoin in the face of widespread global skepticism as a major factor behind his administration’s crypto plans. Despite concerns voiced by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), El Salvador continues to accumulate significant Bitcoin reserves, holding over 6,240 BTC valued at approximately $740 million.
“He’s a leader from the future, who saw the future first because when it wasn’t cool to back Bitcoin, he stood with conviction,” explained Saqib. He lauded Bukele’s approach as demonstrating “you don’t need abundant resources to put your country on the map — just vision and unwavering belief!”
In a significant outcome of the meeting, a key result was the signing of a Letter of Intent between El Salvador’s Bitcoin Office and the Pakistan Crypto Council. This agreement establishes a formal framework for collaboration, focusing on initiatives such as public sector adoption of Bitcoin, blockchain-driven financial inclusion, and tailored policy development for emerging economies.
Mr. Saqib’s meeting with Bukele followed a day of consultations in Pakistan, where the head of the Crypto Council, Bilal Bin Saqib, represented the government alongside Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb in a virtual discussion with Bitcoin technology pioneer Michael Saylor, the CEO of Strategy, whose firm holds $62 billion in Bitcoin reserves.
The Pakistan Crypto Council emphasized subsequent on X that the “strategic engagement reflects Pakistan’s growing commitment to establishing itself as a leading force in the global digital asset economy.”
IMF Blocks Pakistan’s Bitcoin Mining Plans
On July 18th, less than a month prior, the IMF had previously expressed concerns about aspects of Pakistan’s plan to utilize surplus electricity for crypto mining activities. The fund specifically rejected a proposal put forward by relevant Pakistani ministries to offer subsidized electricity pricing for energy-intensive industries, including Bitcoin miners.
Despite Pakistan experiencing consistently higher power generation during winter months, resulting in a theoretical surplus of up to 1,200 megawatts (MW) weekly, the IMF voiced fears that sector-specific price preferences could warrant anti-competitive measures and disrupt the broader national energy balance. This stance comes after Pakistan had in May officially earmarked 2,000 megawatts of this potential surplus electricity for Bitcoin mining operations alongside data centers designed for artificial intelligence, as part of an announced digital transformation drive.
