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(Corrects dateline from ‘Karachi, Jan 9’ to ‘Islamabad, Jan 14’)
By Ariba Shahid
ISLAMABAD, Jan 14 (Reuters) – Pakistan has signed an agreement with a firm connected to World Liberty Financial, the main crypto business of the family of U.S. President Donald Trump, to explore using World Liberty’s stablecoin for cross-border payments, a source involved with the deal said on Wednesday.
The deal represents one of the first publicly announced tie-ups between World Liberty, a crypto-based finance platform launched in September 2024, and a sovereign state. It also comes amid a warming of ties between Pakistan and the United States.
Under the agreement, WLF will work with Pakistan’s central bank to integrate its USD1 stablecoin into a regulated digital payments structure, allowing the token to operate alongside Pakistan’s own digital currency infrastructure, the person said.
They did not provide further details about the deal with SC Financial Technologies, a little-known company linked to World Liberty. Pakistan is expected to announce the agreement later on Wednesday during a visit by World Liberty CEO Zach Witkoff to Islamabad, the person said.
Pakistan’s finance ministry and central bank did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Stablecoins, digital tokens typically pegged to the dollar, have ballooned in value in recent years. Under Trump, the United States has introduced federal rules widely seen as beneficial to the sector, and countries across the world are beginning to examine the potential role of stablecoins in payments and financial systems.
World Liberty fuelled a sharp increase in income for the Trump family business, known as the Trump Organization, including from foreign entities, in the first half of last year, Reuters reported in October. Last May, MGX, a state-controlled Abu Dhabi investment company, used the World Liberty stablecoin to buy a $2 billion equity stake in Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange.
Pakistan has been exploring digital currency projects as it seeks to reduce cash usage and improve cross-border payments such as remittances, a key source of foreign exchange. Its central bank governor said in July it was preparing to launch a pilot for a digital currency and is finalising legislation to regulate virtual assets.
(Reporting by Ariba Shahid in Karachi; Writing by Tom Wilson; Editing by Tom Lasseter and Lincoln Feast.)