Prominent Islamic Scholar's Fatwa Deems Crypto Haram, Testing Pakistan's Regulatory Push

A clash with Pakistan's crypto law

The ruling arrives as Pakistan pursues recognition as a regulated cryptocurrency market. BitKE noted that the fatwa highlights a potential tension between religious guidance and the country's newly enacted Virtual Assets Act 2026.

A fatwa is not legally binding. However, given Usmani's standing in Islamic finance, his views are widely regarded as carrying significant weight across Muslim-majority countries. That combination of legal permissibility on one hand and religious objection on the other creates uncertainty for individuals and institutions navigating both frameworks.

Why it matters beyond Pakistan

The ruling could shape how millions of Muslims approach cryptocurrency investments and influence ongoing debates about Shariah-compliant digital assets. Those discussions extend beyond South Asia to markets in Africa, where several countries with large Muslim populations have seen growing interest in crypto for payments, remittances, and savings.

For the Africa–Europe corridor, where remittance flows and fintech innovation increasingly intersect with digital assets, religious guidance on permissibility can affect user adoption independently of what national regulators allow. The sources do not indicate any formal response from African regulators or Islamic finance bodies on the continent, and it remains unclear how widely the ruling will be adopted outside Pakistan.

The episode underscores a broader question facing digital-asset markets: how emerging regulatory frameworks and long-standing religious principles will coexist as adoption spreads.