Trump’s Pakistan crypto policy marks one of the most dramatic shifts in U.S. foreign relations under Donald Trump. Once seen as a secondary partner compared to India, Pakistan has now become a centrepiece of Trump’s South Asia strategy. This realignment is driven not just by geopolitics but also by cryptocurrency — from Pakistan’s 2,000 MW Bitcoin mining project to Trump-linked World Liberty Financial contracts and even a Nobel Peace Prize nomination.
Pakistan made the biggest promise of its sort in the world when it announced in May 2025 that it would devote 2,000 megawatts of electricity to Bitcoin mining and AI data centres. Officials framed it as a turning point in the nation’s digital transformation. Analysts estimate this allocation could generate between eight and twelve billion dollars annually in mining capacity. What makes the initiative even more striking is the contradiction: while nearly fifty million Pakistanis live without reliable electricity, their government is diverting massive power reserves into Bitcoin farms.
The Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC), founded in March 2025 with Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, serving as a strategic consultant, is leading the effort. Within weeks, PCC attracted global partnerships and foreign investors, taking cues directly from the Trump administration’s own announcement of a U.S. “Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.” PCC’s leadership openly admitted that Pakistan’s plan was “inspired by U.S. President Donald Trump’s initiative,” aligning Islamabad and Washington in an unusual crypto-driven partnership.
The deepest link, however, comes from World Liberty Financial, the crypto platform where the Trump family controls a 60 percent stake through DT Marks LLC. In April 2025, WLF signed a sweeping agreement with the Pakistan Crypto Council to help develop the country’s digital finance infrastructure. This deal not only gives WLF access to Pakistan’s emerging USD1 stablecoin market but also positions the Trump family to receive up to 75 percent of revenue from token sales and transactions. The potential earnings run into hundreds of millions annually, especially as Pakistan pushes to become “South Asia’s crypto capital.” The negotiations were led by Zachary Witkoff, son of Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, underlining how deeply business and diplomacy are now intertwined.
The timing raised further eyebrows. The WLF deal was finalised just days after the Pahalgam terror attack in Kashmir that killed 26 tourists. Trump offered to mediate as tensions between India and Pakistan rose. Indian officials categorically refuted his assertion, claiming that the truce was the result of direct military-to-military communication. Yet the proximity between business deals and political moves has left critics questioning whether personal financial interests shaped Trump’s diplomacy.
This realignment was aided even more by Pakistan’s official nomination of Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2026. Islamabad credited him with “decisive diplomatic intervention” in calming the May crisis, even though India denies any U.S. mediation. Army Chief Asim Munir went so far as to describe Trump as a “genuine peacemaker,” calling the Nobel nomination a recognition of his statesmanship. For Trump, who has long complained about being overlooked for the award, Pakistan’s gesture offered international validation. The irony was glaring, though — the nomination arrived just days before Trump ordered strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
This favouritism toward Pakistan has strategic consequences. Trump has offered Islamabad preferential trade deals, including tariff cuts down to 19 percent, while India has faced escalating tariffs as high as 50 percent for continuing energy trade with Russia. Trump has also promoted U.S. participation in Pakistan’s oil and mineral sector, despite doubts about the size of the reserves. Pakistan, for its part, claims untapped deposits of copper, gold, and rare earth minerals worth trillions of dollars, particularly in the conflict-prone Balochistan region.
The International Monetary Fund has not been impressed. It initially warned against Pakistan’s Bitcoin mining plans, citing the country’s chronic energy shortages and bailout dependence. But by July 2025, the IMF softened its stance, moving to “technical dialogue” rather than outright opposition, a shift that many attribute to U.S. backing.
For India, the fallout is serious. Prime Minister Modi has repeatedly dismissed Trump’s mediation claims and expressed irritation at the Nobel nomination narrative. Former officials like Jake Sullivan and Kenneth Juster warn that Trump’s policies undermine decades of U.S.-India cooperation while handing a strategic advantage to Pakistan. Even within Washington, Democrats argue the tariff war against India hurts U.S. consumers while weakening alliances needed to counter China.
It is difficult to overlook the wider ramifications of Trump’s shift to Pakistan. A nation formerly on the periphery of the U.S. foreign policy now finds itself elevated through cryptocurrency partnerships, preferential trade, and symbolic honours. What makes this shift so extraordinary is not just the geopolitical gamble but the role of Trump’s family business in shaping it. The distinction between public duty and private profit is fuzzier when U.S. policy is linked to individual cryptocurrency endeavours. Whether this represents innovative diplomacy or dangerous self-dealing, Pakistan’s crypto-fueled rise shows how digital assets can reorder alliances in unpredictable ways.
