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FalconX, the US-based digital assets broker, announced on Wednesday is set to offer banking services to institutional clients, as part of a new partnership with Standard Chartered. The crypto platform claims that it executes over $1.5 trillion (roughly Rs. 1,27,97,325 crore) in trading value and serves over 600 institutional clients. Both the firms pointed to a rise in the demand for secure services related to digital assets, as the reason for announcing the initiative. These institutional investors will include asset managers, hedge funds, token issuers, and payment platforms.

With the new partnership, FalconX said it will integrate the bank’s traditional finance infrastructure with its own offerings. This will let large-scale investors tap into an expanded range of currency pairs for investments. The clients will also be able to use Standard Chartered’s expertise to process reliable international settlements using digital assets.

“We support trading and financing for some of the world’s largest institutions in digital asset markets, and this relationship strengthens our ability to deliver robust banking and FX solutions to clients who rely on us to operate in crypto markets,” said Matt Long, General Manager, APAC and Middle East at FalconX.Standard Chartered is one of many established banks that are exploring the digital assets sector. In November 2022, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) teamed up with Standard Chartered to pilot the uses of digital tokens to simplify financial trading. Similarly, in September 2024, the London-headquartered lender launched a crypto custody service in the UAE designed to provide guidance to institutional investors with traditional expertise.

Luke Boland, a senior official from Standard Chartered, said the bank will continue to contribute to developing the digital asset ecosystem.

“As institutional demand for digital assets continues to grow, we’re proud to provide the banking infrastructure that enables firms like FalconX to deliver world-class trading and financing solutions to institutional clients,” Boland noted.Earlier this month, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) allowed banks in the US to offer services like crypto custody and management. The OCC also said customers of US national banks and federal savings associations can access crypto custody services from their lenders in the US and seek assistance in buying or selling of crypto assets.

Dubai’s Department of Finance (DOF) plans to use cryptocurrencies to process payments for government services in the emirate. In the days to come, residents of Dubai will be able to pay for government services using cryptocurrencies. On Tuesday, May 13, the DOF announced a partnership with Crypto.com, onboarding it as the crypto payment facilitator. Dubai authorities see the move as a significant step towards advancing its digital finance capabilities.

Senior members from the DOF were present during the signing of the MoU with Crypto.com. The development was announced at the sidelines of the ongoing Dubai FinTech Summit. In its announcement, the DOF said Dubai was transitioning into a fully digital economy. The regulators there view cryptocurrencies as a secure and efficient way to complete financial settlements.

“Collaboration between the public and private sectors plays a vital role. Through strategic partnerships, we remain dedicated to establishing a sustainable financial model that empowers individuals and businesses, cementing Dubai’s leadership in financial technology,” said Ahmad Ali Meftah, executive director of the Central Accounts Sector at DOF.The move aligns with the Dubai Cashless Strategy announced last year, wherein Dubai aims to digitise 90 percent of all transactions. The initiative is expected to add at least AED eight billion (roughly Rs. 18,582 crore) to the economy annually.

“The emirate is strengthening its position by deploying the latest secure financial technology solutions that support its cashless strategy, streamline government transactions, and foster innovation in financial services,” said Abdulla Mohammed Al Basti, secretary general of the executive council of Dubai.

Dubai established a regulatory body, called the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), to oversee the Web3 industry back in March 2022. Owing to the legal clarity around Web3 in Dubai, several crypto firms have flocked to the region to expand their businesses.Crypto.com, the Singapore-headquartered crypto exchange, for instance, announced its Dubai office in 2022. Now, as part of its deal with the DOF, the exchange plans to deliver the “first comprehensive and holistic government-wide implementation of payment digitisation”.We are proud to be selected to support Dubai’s Department of Finance as part of this initiative,” said Eric Anziani, president and COO of Crypto.com.

This, however, is not the first initiative in the UAE that aims to bridge the gap between Web3 and traditional finance.In February, UAE’s Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure (MoEI) signed an MoU with Shiba Inu to deploy the ShibOS operating system for government activities across the UAE.

Dubai also plans to continue exploring contactless technologies like cryptocurrencies, as well as AI-based solutions.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is set to release $1.3 billion to Bangladesh in June, after completing a fourth review of its $4.7-billion loan programme and a key breakthrough in talks on exchange rate reforms, the country’s finance ministry said.

The funds, covering both the fourth and fifth tranches, had been held up as the IMF pressed for greater exchange rate flexibility, particularly the adoption of a crawling peg mechanism.

The fourth review in Dhaka in April was followed by further discussions during the Bank-Fund Spring Meetings in Washington DC that month, focused on critical reforms in revenue management, fiscal policy, and the foreign exchange regime.

“After carefully reviewing all the issues … both parties have agreed on the revenue management, currency exchange rate and other reform frameworks,” the finance ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.With completion of a staff-level agreement on the fourth review, the IMF is expected to release $1.3 billion set for the fourth and fifth installments together by June, it added.The government has also dissolved the National Board of Revenue (NBR), replacing it with two divisions under the finance ministry, to meet a key IMF condition.

One division will handle tax policy with the other managing tax collection and administration, aiming to enhance efficiency, transparency, and accountability, the government said.
In addition to the IMF funds, the government expects budget support of $2 billion from development partners, the finance ministry added.

These bodies include the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), Japan, and the OPEC Fund for International Development, it added.Bangladesh turned to the IMF in 2023 for the $4.7-billion bailout as its foreign reserves were pressured by a global surge in commodity prices triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, straining its ability to pay for key imports of fuel and gas.

The South Asian nation previously received $2.3 billion across the first three tranches.

An interim government led by Nobel Peace laureate Muhammad Yunus took office in August after the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina following deadly protests.

Vaibhav Taneja, an Indian-origin executive and Tesla’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) since 2023, reportedly earned a whopping $139 million in 2024, Wall Street Journal reported. This figure, driven primarily by stock options and equity awards granted after his promotion, dwarfs his base salary of $400,000 and surpasses the earnings of prominent tech CEOs like Microsoft’s Satya Nadella and Google’s Sundar Pichai.

In 2024, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s compensation package was $79.106 million, while Alphabet’s CEO Sundar Pichai took home $10.73 million, according to the company’s 2025 Proxy Statement.Mr Taneja’s salary of $139 million eclipsed both Nadella’s and Pichai’s, making headlines as potentially the highest pay for a finance chief in decades. 

Mr Taneja, 47, who joined Tesla in 2017, benefited from a rising stock price, with shares near $250 at the time of the award, vesting over four years. By May 19, 2025, Tesla’s stock reached approximately $342, despite the company facing declining EV deliveries and profits. This package outstrips the prior CFO record of $86 million set by Nikola’s CFO in 2020, before its 2024 bankruptcy.This substantial pay package is pivotal for Tesla, as the electric vehicle (EV) industry faces significant hurdles, including declining deliveries, shrinking profit margins, and intensified competition. Mr Taneja’s compensation has also drawn attention amid broader scrutiny of Tesla’s financial strategies and executive pay practices.Tesla’s co-founder and CEO, Elon Musk, is currently appealing a Delaware court ruling that voided his $56 billion compensation package, one of the largest in corporate history. Musk argues that his payout was justified, as it fueled Tesla’s extraordinary growth, transforming it into a global leader in EVs and renewable energy.

About Vaibhav Taneja

Born in India, Mr Taneja holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Delhi University (1999) and is a qualified Chartered Accountant from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (2000) and a Certified Public Accountant (2006). He joined Tesla in 2017, from SolarCity, a solar energy company that Tesla acquired in 2016, where he originally served as vice president and later corporate controller and led the successful integration of both companies’ accounting teams. 

Before SolarCity, Taneja spent 17 years at PricewaterhouseCoopers, rising to Senior Manager in Assurance. He is also a director at Tesla India Motors and Energy Private Limited, supporting Tesla’s India expansion. With over two decades of experience in finance, accounting, and multinational operations, Taneja plays a key role in Tesla’s financial strategy and global growth.

The Pakistan government is reportedly planning to borrow USD 4.9 billion from international banks to meet its external financing needs and strengthen its foreign exchange reserves. This comes after the International Monetary Fund, earlier this month, authorised the “immediate disbursement” of a billion-dollar bailout to the South Asian nation’s troubled economy.

Islamabad’s strategy is to secure USD 2.64 billion in short-term loans from international commercial banks at expected annual interest rates between 7 per cent and 8 per cent without strict conditions or performance benchmarks, according to a report by ARY News.

Additionally, the government is seeking USD 2.27 billion through long-term borrowing arrangements from commercial banks, the report said.

As part of the plan, Islamabad is reportedly in touch with four major international banks. This includes a proposal to obtain USD 1.1 billion from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), along with USD 500 million each from Standard Chartered Bank and Dubai Islamic Bank. Moreover, a commercial guarantee is also being sought for a USD 500 million loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), according to a report by newsagency ANI. 

The additional funding is reportedly part of Islamabad’s broader strategy to meet Pakistan’s external financing needs, which are driven by large debt repayment obligations and limited access to global capital markets, as well as to strengthen its foreign exchange reserves. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has set a goal for Pakistan to advance its reserves to $13.9 billion by the end of June, with the country’s State Bank currently holding a reserve of approximately $14 billion, which is enough to cover three months of imports.

Pakistan Fails To Meet Economic Target

The Pakistani federal government has reportedly fallen short of its economic growth target for the fiscal year 2024-25, achieving a growth rate of just 2.68 per cent against a projected 3.6 per cent, ARY News reported on Tuesday, citing sources from Pakistan’s National Accounts Committee.

This was reportedly revealed during a National Accounts Committee meeting in Islamabad, chaired by the Secretary Planning.

The report said that Pakistan’s economic output reached USD 411 billion, with per capita income increasing to USD 1,824.Sector-wise performance varied, with agriculture growing by 1.8 per cent during the first three quarters, while the industrial sector declined by 1.14 per cent. Notably, the services sector posted a strong growth of 39 per cent between July and March, as per ARY News.

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