NEW DELHI: The United States has been steadily warming up to Pakistan over the last few months, and this engagement goes far beyond routine diplomacy.
At the centre of the shift lies a crypto deal -- an arrangement that appears less like economic cooperation and more like a financial pact between the Trump family's crypto venture and Pakistan's military-linked funds, with a chain of controversial actors involved, according to a thread report posted by DisInfo Lab.
One of the key figures is Bilal bin Saqib, a British-Pakistani entrepreneur who now serves as CEO of Pakistan's newly formed Crypto Council (PCC) as well as Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Blockchain.
The connection worth noting is that Bilal is also an advisor to World Liberty Financial (WLF), the Trump family's crypto enterprise.
WLF is no ordinary crypto company. Eric Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and Jared Kushner together hold a 40 per cent stake, while Donald Trump himself is listed as "co-founder emeritus".
The Pakistan-WLF deal was signed on April 26 amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan. Just days earlier, on April 15, WLF had appointed Bilal as an advisor, and by May, he was also installed as CEO of the PCC.
This dual role places him at the heart of the arrangement, representing Islamabad's crypto vision while simultaneously serving the Trump family's interests in Washington, the report suggests.
By June, Bilal had already met with a wide range of American political leaders and influencers, including Senator Cynthia Lummis, co-sponsor of the Bitcoin Act, Senator Bill Hagerty of the Banking Committee, White House advisers, and New York City Mayor Eric Adams. During these meetings, he pitched Pakistan's "crypto vision", all the while maintaining his advisory position with WLF.