Govt eyes tokenisation of bonds via blockchain

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is likely to link its Naya Pakistan Certificates (NPCs) and sovereign bonds to a regulated blockchain via Digitally Native Notes (DNNs) to enable swift settlement for retail investors, particularly overseas Pakistanis. A meeting, presided over by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and the newly created Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) on Monday, discussed the tokenisation of sovereign debt instruments and NPCs. It examined potential structures, implementation pathways, regulatory considerations, and next steps for exploring tokenised sovereign instruments within Pakistan’s evolving financial ecosystem. A central element of the discussion was the international precedent for sovereign and quasi-sovereign debt tokenisation and how Pakistan can adopt a structure aligned with established global market infrastructure. “It was agreed that PVARA, Ministry of Finance and SBP will continue to coordinate on the design, governance, and phased development of the agenda. Further announcements will follow as the work progresses through the appropriate approvals,” the Ministry of Finance said. Pakistan plans to issue Naya Pakistan Certificates and sovereign bonds as Digitally Native Notes The model under consideration, often referred to as a DNN issued through a regulated financial market infrastructure, allows a sovereign bond to be created on a regulated blockchain platform at the moment of issuance, with same-day settlement before integrating with the conventional international clearing and settlement systems that already serve Pakistan’s existing Eurobond programme, added the statement. The bond’s coupon payments, secondary trading, and final repayment continue through the established global infrastructure, ensuring full interoperability with the institutional investor base that participates in Pakistan’s conventional sovere...

Original source: Dawn Pakistan