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Al Arabiya
5 days ago
- Business
- Al Arabiya
Pakistan spy agency targets black market dollar trade to control rupee slide
A deputy chief at Pakistan's spy agency met with currency exchange firms this week amid a sharp slide in the rupee, leading to a crackdown on black market dollar trade, the head of the country's forex association told Reuters on Thursday. The move, a demonstration of the military's growing role in managing the economy, marks the second such intervention, following a 2023 army clamp down that halted an earlier sharp plunge in the currency, helping stabilize the exchange rate until this month. Currency dealers say the rupee is again under pressure as a result of dollar hoarding, cross-border smuggling, and banking restrictions that have driven demand to unregulated dealers offering quicker or better rates. Faisal Naseer, a major general heading the internal security arm of the military's Inter-Services Intelligence, met with exchange firms this week, according to Malik Muhammad Bostan, chairman of the Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan. Following the meeting, security forces, including the Federal Investigation Agency - a civilian security agency - began targeting illegal currency dealers, many of whom subsequently went underground, he said. The open market dollar rate was down one rupee following the intervention, said Bostan, who credited the enforcement drive and a resulting improvement in the supply of dollars to the market. A spokesperson for the military's media wing did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Border controls with Iran and Afghanistan were tightened during tensions with India earlier this year, curbing illicit currency flows. But with checks now eased and the central bank buying dollars to build reserves, formal supply is under strain, Bostan said. Under Pakistan's $7 billion program with the International Monetary Fund, authorities have pledged to keep the gap between the interbank and open market rates within 1.25 percent to prevent remittances - crucial to maintaining foreign exchange levels - from shifting to informal channels and eroding reserves. Despite this week's crackdown, dollars are still not available in upscale areas of the commercial hub Karachi, pushing buyers to the grey market, where rates remain about 5 percent above interbank, said Adnan Sheikh of Pakistan Kuwait Investment Company.
Reuters
5 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Pakistan spy agency targets black market dollar trade to curb rupee slide
KARACHI, July 24 (Reuters) - A deputy chief at Pakistan's spy agency met with currency exchange firms this week amid a sharp slide in the rupee, leading to a crackdown on black market dollar trade, the head of the country's forex association told Reuters on Thursday. The move, a demonstration of the military's growing role in managing the economy, marks the second such intervention, following a 2023 army clamp down that halted an earlier sharp plunge in the currency, helping stabilise the exchange rate until this month. Currency dealers say the rupee is again under pressure as a result of dollar hoarding, cross-border smuggling, and banking restrictions that have driven demand to unregulated dealers offering quicker or better rates. Faisal Naseer, a major general heading the internal security arm of the military's Inter-Services Intelligence, met with exchange firms this week, according to Malik Muhammad Bostan, chairman of the Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan. Following the meeting, security forces, including the Federal Investigation Agency - a civilian security agency - began targeting illegal currency dealers, many of whom subsequently went underground, he said. The open market dollar rate was down one rupee following the intervention, said Bostan, who credited the enforcement drive and a resulting improvement in the supply of dollars to the market. A spokesperson for the military's media wing did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Border controls with Iran and Afghanistan were tightened during tensions with India earlier this year, curbing illicit currency flows. But with checks now eased and the central bank buying dollars to build reserves, formal supply is under strain, Bostan said. Under Pakistan's $7 billion programme with the International Monetary Fund, authorities have pledged to keep the gap between the interbank and open market rates within 1.25% to prevent remittances - crucial to maintaining foreign exchange levels - from shifting to informal channels and eroding reserves. Despite this week's crackdown, dollars are still not available in upscale areas of the commercial hub Karachi, pushing buyers to the grey market, where rates remain about 5% above interbank, said Adnan Sheikh of Pakistan Kuwait Investment Company.
Bloomberg
5 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Pakistan Army Intelligence Officer Meets FX Body as Rupee Falls
A group of private foreign exchange companies in Pakistan met with the head of an intelligence department this week to discuss the local rupee's slump. 'We briefed them about the current currency market situation,' said Malik Bostan, the chairman of the Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan, referring to a July 22 meeting with Major General Faisal Naseer, a director general in the Inter-Services Intelligence.
NDTV
07-06-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
150 Pak Contacts, Hotline To ISI: Details From 'Spy' Jasbir Singh's Probe
Quick Read Summary is AI generated, newsroom reviewed. Punjab YouTuber Jasbir Singh was arrested for alleged espionage, and subsequent questioning revealed multiple Pakistan visits and ties to ISI operatives. He confessed to sharing a laptop with a Pakistani intelligence officer. Punjab YouTuber Jasbir Singh, whose arrest marked the most recent action in India's action against an alleged cross-border espionage network, had visited Pakistan six times and had around 150 contact numbers from the neighbouring country in his phone. After his arrest earlier this week, the man behind the popular 'JaanMahal Video' YouTube channel told police during remand that he had given his laptop to a Pakistan intelligence officer for around an hour. Further, like many others arrested for allegedly passing on crucial information to Pakistan, including YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra, Singh too was in touch with Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) operative Danish alias Ehsan-ur-Rehman, who worked as a visa officer in the Pakistani embassy in Delhi. He was introduced to Danish by a female friend, he told a court in Punjab's Mohali. Singh also told the police that Danish had ordered some SIM cards from him. Danish was expelled from New Delhi after his link to the espionage network was found after Malhotra's arrest. On Saturday, Singh's police remand was extended for two days. He was arrested on June 4 on espionage charges and was allegedly in close touch with Malhotra. After his arrest the police had claimed that it unearthed a "terror-backed espionage network" linking him to Pakistani intelligence and army officials. Earlier, Singh was found to be associated with Pakistan Intelligence Officer Shakir alias Jutt Randhawa and it was established that he came into direct contact with ISI officers during his visits to Pakistan in 2020, 2021 and 2024. He also disclosed during police interrogation that former Pakistan cop Nasir Dhillon had introduced him to ISI officials in Lahore. On his YouTube channel, which has 11 lakh subscribers, Singh posted travel and cooking vlogs. Security agencies also suspect that hundreds of former police personnel of Pakistan Police are part of the espionage racket, which targets Indian YouTubers. Others facing spying charges include a student from Patiala's Khalsa College, Davendra Singh Dhillon. The 25-year-old was arrested in Haryana after he uploaded photos of a pistol on Facebook, and his Pakistan links emerged during his questioning. Nauman Ilahi, a 24-year-old security guard in Haryana, was found to be in touch with an ISI handler in Pakistan, and used to receive money in the account of his brother-in-law. A 28-year-old health worker from Gujarat Sahdev Singh Gohil was arrested for transmitting sensitive information related to Indian military infrastructure to a Pakistani operative. Arman, 23, and Tarif, both from Haryana's Nuh district, were arrested within days of each other. Tarif was caught trying to delete chats with Pakistani numbers when police arrived at his residence. Shakur Khan, a Rajasthan government employee from Jaisalmer, was also arrested on spying charges.
NDTV
06-06-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Ex-Pakistan Cop Mastermind Of Cross-Border Spy Ring, Says Arrested YouTuber
New Delhi: Ex-Pakistan Cop Mastermind Of Cross-Border Spy Ring, Says Arrested YouTuber A former sub-inspector from the Pakistan Police ranks was among the masterminds of a cross-border espionage racket, which various Indians have been found to be a part of. Punjab YouTuber Jasbir Singh, who was arrested earlier this week for allegedly spying for Pakistan, disclosed during interrogation that the former cop Nasir Dhillon had introduced him to Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) officials in Lahore. He had also arranged Jasbir Singh's meeting with ISI operative Danish in Pakistan. Nasir Dhillon, who is now a YouTuber, used to connect Indian social media personalities with ISI operative Danish alias Ehsan-ur-Rehman, who worked as a visa officer in the Pakistani embassy in Delhi. Danish was expelled from India in May, after travel vlogger Jyoti Malhotra was exposed for spying for the country with whom ties have plummeted since the April 22 Pahalgam attack and May 7 Operation Sindoor strikes. Both Jasbir Singh and Nasir Dhillon know Jyoti Malhotra, who runs the travel YouTube account 'Travel With Jo', and was among the first of spies in the alleged Islamabad-run espionage ring to be arrested. Further, police have found that Danish used to call the spies as guests to the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi and assign tasks. Security agencies also suspect that hundreds of former police personnel of Pakistan Police are part of the espionage racket, which targets Indian YouTubers. Jasbir Singh, who runs a YouTube channel named 'JaanMahal video' and has over a million subscribers, was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly passing on information on Indian forces' movement to the ISI. He was allegedly in contact with an ISI officer named Shakir, alias Jutt Randhawa, who was part of a terror-backed spying network, said Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav. He had visited Pakistan thrice, and several Pakistani numbers were found on his devices, which are now under forensic probe. He had also attended the Pakistan National Day program held at the Pakistani Embassy in Delhi on Danish's invitation. After Jyoti Malhotra's arrest, Jasbir Singh tried to erase the traces of his communications with Pakistani officials to avoid detection, said DGP Yadav. Others facing spying charges include a student from Patiala's Khalsa College, Davendra Singh Dhillon. The 25-year-old was arrested in Haryana after he uploaded photos of a pistol on Facebook, and his Pakistan links emerged during his questioning. Nauman Ilahi, a 24-year-old security guard in Haryana, was found to be in touch with an ISI handler in Pakistan, and used to receive money in the account of his brother-in-law. A 28-year-old health worker from Gujarat Sahdev Singh Gohil was arrested for transmitting sensitive information related to Indian military infrastructure to a Pakistani operative. Arman, 23, and Tarif, both from Haryana's Nuh district, were arrested within days of each other. Tarif was caught trying to delete chats with Pakistani numbers when police arrived at his residence. Shakur Khan, a Rajasthan government employee from Jaisalmer, was also arrested on spying charges.
