Confidential document

Remittance
Infrastructure
Pakistan

UAE  ·  UK  ·  US corridors
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UAE
Canton
UK
Canton
US
PKR
Confidential / Government of Pakistan
April 2026

Digital Remittance
Infrastructure
for Pakistan

Regulated stablecoin remittance across three corridors: UAE, UK and US. USDC and USD1 supported. Built on HiFi, Canton Network and Cantor8. Target fee below 1% all-in.

Submitted to the
Ministry of Finance, Government of Pakistan
State Bank of Pakistan
Pakistan Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority
$38B
Annual remittance inflows, FY2025
5th
Largest remittance recipient globally
40M
Estimated crypto-active citizens
<1%
Target all-in fee at full deployment
The opportunity

Pakistan's remittance market is large,
expensive, and partially informal

Remittances are Pakistan's largest source of foreign exchange — bigger than FDI and aid combined. Formal channels average 6.49% globally (World Bank Q1 2025). Every percentage point saved on $38B returns $380M to Pakistani households.

$824M
Monthly inflows from UAE corridor (March 2026, SBP)
6.49%
Global average remittance fee, World Bank Q1 2025
<1%
Target all-in fee at launch

The UAE, UK and US corridors together represent over $1.7B in monthly formal inflows.

Current landscape

How Pakistan's diaspora sends money today

Five channels serve the market today, each with distinct cost, speed and user profile. Digital channels now represent 61% of global transactions (FXC Intelligence, 2025).

Legacy MTO
Western Union
0–3% by corridor

13,000+ agent locations across Pakistan. Fees near-zero on UAE corridor (PRI subsidies); US 1.49% and UK 2.90% average (World Bank RPW 2025). Revenue comes from FX margin, not the headline transfer fee.

13,000+
Pakistan agent locations
200+
Countries served globally
Minutes / 1 day
Cash pickup / bank deposit (UK)
Cash pickup in minutes; bank deposit 1 day (UK), 2–5 days (US). Zero transfer fee — margin is in the FX rate.
Digital fintech
Wise
0.6–1.5% (USD)

Mid-market rate, zero FX markup. $6.30 to send $1,000 USD (0.63%) from Wise balance; ~1.5% via ACH. 74% of Pakistan transfers arrive under 20 seconds; 95% within 24 hours (Wise, 2025).

Same day
95% under 24hrs, 74% under 20 secs
Mid-market
Exchange rate used
140+
Countries supported
Requires Pakistani bank account. No cash pickup.
Digital fintech
Remitly
1–3%

Economy (3–5 days) and Express (minutes) tiers. UK-Pakistan average 2.90% on £148 (World Bank / Remitly, 2025). Supports JazzCash and Easypaisa delivery.

Minutes
Express transfer speed
JazzCash
Mobile wallet delivery
170+
Send countries
Express rates higher than Economy. Exact corridor pricing requires app check.
Bank channel
SWIFT / Bank wire
avg 14.55%

Flat fee makes SWIFT punishing for household amounts: ~15% on a $300 transfer (Chase $40 + FX), falling to ~6% at $1,000. Only competitive above $5,000. World Bank RPW Q1 2025 bank average: 14.55%.

3–5 days
Typical settlement
~15% on $300
US corridor, Chase — flat fee driven
$5,000+
Transfer size where banks are competitive
Correspondent fees deducted en route — recipient may receive less than sent. 3–5 working days.
Informal
Hawala networks
0.5–2%

Broker-to-broker value transfer across Gulf, UK and US diaspora communities. Sender pays locally; recipient is paid in Pakistan — often same day, with no formal record or regulatory trail.

Same day
Typical settlement
~20–30%
Est. share of true flows
0% tax
Captured by government
This architecture is designed to match hawala's core advantages — privacy, speed and cost — within a regulated framework.
Gap this proposal addresses
No regulated solution offers hawala-equivalent privacy at sub-1% cost. For bank wire users, the saving against a ~15% effective rate is substantial.
Combined addressable volume
UAE + UK + US corridors represent over $1.7B per month in formal inflows across three of Pakistan's highest-volume remittance corridors.
Market share

How Pakistan remittances are sent today

Estimated channel split across the UAE, UK and US corridors. Hawala flows are not captured in official SBP statistics.

$38B annual inflows
Exchange houses / MTOs37%
Western Union, MoneyGram, UAE exchange bureaus
Bank wire (SWIFT)22%
HBL, MCB, UBL, Meezan, international banks
Digital fintechs21%
Wise, Remitly, Xoom, PayPal
Hawala (informal)~20%
Est. World Bank / IOM; excluded from SBP figures
Source: World Bank RPW Q1 2025, SBP FY2025, IOM Pakistan Remittance Report 2024
The partners

Four parties

01
On/off ramp
HiFi
hifi.com

HiFi is the on/off ramp partner across the UAE, UK and US corridors.

  • UAE corridor (AED)
  • UK corridor (GBP)
  • US corridor (USD)
  • USDC and USD1 supported
  • PKR delivery in Pakistan
02
Settlement rail
Canton Network
canton.network

Canton is the privacy-enabled settlement layer, where each party sees only the data they are authorised to see.

  • Near-zero cost settlement (<$0.01 per transaction)
  • Sub-transaction privacy: data shared only with authorised parties
  • 24/7 settlement, no banking hours or correspondent delays
  • State Bank of Pakistan validator node for compliance visibility
  • USDC and USD1 both supported on Canton
03
Wallet infrastructure
Cantor8
cantor8.tech

Cantor8 is the wallet infrastructure partner.

  • Exclusive Canton integration partner for this initiative
  • Validator node operation and maintenance
  • Custom consumer frontend design and build
  • C8 wallet integration across UAE, UK and US corridors
  • DAML smart contract development for the regulated payment framework
  • Member of the Global Synchronizer Foundation
04
Regulator & sovereign node
State Bank of Pakistan
sbp.org.pk

The SBP runs a permissioned Canton validator node giving it direct AML/CFT visibility across all flows, and retains the right to approve or revoke permitted stablecoins.

  • Canton validator node operation: compliance visibility
  • Approval of permitted stablecoins (USDC and USD1)
  • FATF Travel Rule compliance via structured on-chain data
The three corridors

End-to-end flow and fee detail

All three corridors run the same stack. AED, GBP and USD convert to USDC at source; Canton settles instantly; HiFi delivers PKR at the interbank rate.

HiFi on/off ramp UAE, UK and US corridors • USDC and USD1
Sender
UAE worker
Holds AED
HiFi on-ramp
AED → USDC
AED peg fixed at 3.672
Canton Network
USDC / USD1
Private, instant settlement
<$0.01
HiFi off-ramp
USDC → PKR
SBP interbank rate
Recipient
PKR delivered
PKR in Cantor8 frontend
HiFi on/off ramp UAE, UK and US corridors • USDC and USD1
Sender
UK worker
Holds GBP
HiFi on-ramp
GBP → USDC
Via Faster Payments API
Canton Network
USDC / USD1
Private, instant settlement
<$0.01
HiFi off-ramp
USDC → PKR
SBP interbank rate
Recipient
PKR delivered
PKR in Cantor8 frontend
HiFi on/off ramp UAE, UK and US corridors • USDC and USD1
Sender
US worker
Holds USD
HiFi on-ramp
USD → USDC
ACH, near 1:1 conversion
Canton Network
USDC / USD1
Private, instant settlement
<$0.01
HiFi off-ramp
USDC → PKR
SBP interbank rate
Recipient
PKR delivered
PKR in Cantor8 frontend
Roadmap

Three phases to full deployment

Phase 1
Q3 2026
Pilot: 500 users across UAE corridor
Cantor8 deploys SBP validator node and delivers custom frontend v1. HiFi activates AED on-ramp and USDC/PKR off-ramp. PVARA compliance framework finalised. 500-user pilot with UAE diaspora.
Phase 2
Q4 2026
Scale: UK and US corridors live, 100,000 users
HiFi GBP and USD on-ramps activated. Cantor8 custom frontend extended to UK and US corridors. USD1 live alongside USDC. Target: 100,000 active users.
Phase 3
H1 2027
Full public launch: 25% corridor capture
Full public launch across all three corridors.
Digital Remittance Infrastructure for Pakistan
Confidential / April 2026 / For discussion purposes only
HiFi • Canton Network • Cantor8
State Bank of Pakistan • PVARA
Ministry of Finance