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$500m for Trump, access for Pakistan: How a crypto-diplomatic bet paid off
Al Jazeera • • general
Key Points:
- US President Donald Trump’s family crypto venture, World Liberty Financial (WLF), earned over $500 million from token sales in 2025, with Pakistan among the first countries to engage with the firm.
- In January, Pakistan’s Ministry of Finance signed an MoU with WLF affiliate SC Financial Technologies to explore using its USD1 stablecoin for cross-border payments, but no pilot projects or transactions have occurred since.
- Despite the lack of practical use, analysts view the deal as a strategic move by Pakistan to gain rare diplomatic access to the Trump administration, enhancing ties amid regional tensions and US-Iran mediation efforts.
- Pakistan has advanced crypto regulation with the Virtual Assets Act and the establishment of the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA), though full licensing and operational frameworks remain under development.
- Experts suggest the MoU’s primary value was diplomatic access rather than economic benefit, with some describing the arrangement as a “pay for access” strategy to strengthen Pakistan’s relationship with the US government.
