Check a Crypto Exchange Is PVARA Licensed Before You Deposit in Pakistan
PVARA notified its crypto licensing rules on 21 August 2026. Check an exchange against the public register, and know what the rules say about your deposit.
Before you deposit money on a crypto exchange in Pakistan, check that it appears on the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) public register of licensees. PVARA's Virtual Asset Services Regulations, notified on 21 August 2026, say it must publish that register. An exchange that is not on it, or that cannot show a PVARA No Objection Certificate (NOC), has no licence to hold your money.
Crypto in Pakistan now runs under a statute, not a grey area. The Virtual Assets Act, 2026 made PVARA the federal regulator, and the Authority's own website says every virtual asset service provider (VASP) must hold a licence before it offers services here. A VASP is any company that runs an exchange, a wallet, custody or a broker service for virtual assets. This guide shows how to check one, what the rules promise your deposit, and what to do if a platform fails the check.
Know what the licence means before you check
A licence means PVARA has examined the company and allowed it to serve customers in Pakistan. It does not guarantee profit. It does not protect you from a price crash. It only says the company has met rules on ownership, systems and how it handles customer money.
PVARA's regulations were notified on 21 August 2026 as S.R.O. 1419(I)/2026. They replaced the earlier NOC Regulations, 2025, which PVARA says applied only until the new rules arrived. Three stages matter to you as a customer:
- A firm already operating before 5 March 2026 had to file Form I by 5 September 2026 to keep working while PVARA decides.
- A new firm needs a PVARA NOC, or a place in its regulatory sandbox, and then a licence.
- A firm holding an NOC applies for a licence. PVARA's apply page gives it three months from the date the licensing regulations were promulgated.
So in October 2026 many platforms are still "applied" rather than "licensed". That difference is the whole point of the check. Our earlier report on the 5 September crypto deadline explains who had to file.
Check the PVARA register, not the platform's own claim
Start on pvara.gov.pk. Regulation 9(6) says the Authority shall maintain and publish an up-to-date public register of licensees. Use that register, or a notice from PVARA, as your proof. A badge or banner on an exchange's own site proves nothing.
Follow this order:
- Write down the exact company name from the exchange's terms page. It is often different from the app name.
- Open pvara.gov.pk and look for the register of licensees and any list of NOC holders.
- Search for the company name. A match on a similar name is not a match.
- Check which licence category is listed, because a firm may be licensed for one service only.
- If you cannot find it, ask the firm for its PVARA licence or NOC number in writing, then ask PVARA to confirm it.
We opened the PVARA home, regulations and apply pages on 11 October 2026. We did not find a searchable register on the pages we could open, so we cannot say how PVARA will present it. Check the site again before you rely on this step.
Read what the rules promise your deposit
The regulations contain a clear rule on customer assets. Under regulation 33, a licensee must keep customer assets separate from its own and may not use, pledge, lend or rehypothecate them without the customer's prior informed explicit consent. Rehypothecate means re-using your assets as security for the firm's own borrowing.
For some licence types, PVARA may also require the firm to hold assets equal to 100 per cent of what it owes customers at all times. That is a power the Authority may use, not a promise for every firm. Licensed firms must also keep records for at least 10 years, according to the PVARA regulations page.
| What you see | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Listed on the PVARA register | Licensed for the listed category | Read the terms, then start small |
| Holds a PVARA NOC only | Approved to set up, not yet licensed | Wait or deposit a small test amount |
| Applied, still waiting | May continue under interim limits | Treat as unlicensed until listed |
| Not on any PVARA list | No proof it may serve you | Do not deposit |
The regulations also let PVARA bar a pending applicant from taking new customers, or cap its products and volumes. A firm still waiting may therefore have limits you cannot see on its homepage.
Check how you will get money in and out
PVARA is one half of the check. The State Bank is the other. In late September the SBP told banks to open accounts only for PVARA-licensed crypto firms, and we covered that in our note on bank accounts for licensed crypto firms. If an exchange asks you to send rupees to a personal account, a wallet number or a shop account, stop. That is a sign it has no bank account of its own.
Peer to peer trading, where you buy from another person, is a separate question. Our explainer on the Lahore High Court and crypto P2P covers what the court said.
What to do if a platform fails the check
Do not deposit. If you already sent money, take screenshots of your balance, the deposit address, the chat history and the bank or wallet receipt. Ask for a withdrawal at once, in writing, and keep the reply.
If the platform refuses or goes silent, report it to the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency through its complaint channels, and tell your bank. Our guide on getting a refund after online fraud shows how to raise a dispute with a bank. Move fast, because a bank has more room to act in the first hours.
Common questions
Is crypto legal in Pakistan in October 2026?
Holding crypto is not a crime under the Virtual Assets Act, 2026, but the services around it must be licensed by PVARA. Our guide on whether crypto is legal in Pakistan has the detail.
Where do I find PVARA's list of licensed firms?
Start at pvara.gov.pk. The regulations say PVARA must publish a public register of licensees. We could not open a searchable register on 11 October 2026, so ask PVARA directly if you cannot find one.
What is a PVARA NOC?
A No Objection Certificate is preliminary approval for a firm to go on and set up and apply for a licence. It is not a licence.
Does a PVARA licence protect me from losses?
No. It covers how the firm is run and how it holds your assets. It does not cover price falls or bad trades.
Can a firm still operate if it is only waiting for approval?
Yes, if it filed a complete Form I by 5 September 2026, PVARA's apply page says that preserves the right to continue pending a decision. PVARA can still set limits on it.
How we verified this
What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.
Last checked 11 October 2026. We opened the PVARA home page, its regulations page, its apply page and the Pakistan Virtual Asset Services Regulations, 2026 (S.R.O. 1419(I)/2026, dated 21 August 2026) on pvara.gov.pk. The deadlines, the three routes, regulation 9(6) on the public register and regulation 33 on customer assets come from those pages. We could not open a searchable register of licensees and we did not test any exchange. The three month licence window is as PVARA's apply page words it, and we could not confirm the exact calendar date from the pages we opened. This is information, not financial advice.
About the author
Technology Journalist & Multimedia Producer
Ahmad Ali is a technology journalist and multimedia producer at Pakistan Era, joining the team in October 2026. He covers consumer technology and digital life for Pakistani readers, combining research with hands-on product testing.
