Pakistan’s freelance earnings surge 46% to $550 million in Q1 FY27

Pakistan’s freelance earnings reached about $550 million in the first quarter of FY2026-27, a 46% increase from a year earlier, according to Profit by Pakistan Today. Income for September alone was a record $197 million. The figures were highlighted alongside a Payoneer report on stablecoins and cross-border payments.

The report, presented at Money20/20 in Las Vegas, surveyed 265 executives at US-based businesses with annual revenue of at least $100 million. It found 69% were using stablecoins, while 41% said adoption had reached a meaningful scale; faster settlement was the most cited advantage, at 50%. About one-third offered stablecoin services to customers, and half planned to add them within three years.

Payoneer said dollar-denominated balances could be useful to Pakistan’s estimated three million freelancers, but converting digital dollars into local currency, regulatory compliance and integration remain challenges. Pakistan is developing a virtual-asset framework under the Virtual Assets Act 2026, which created the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority. The regulator estimates that lowering transfer costs by one percentage point on roughly $40 billion in annual remittances could save about $400 million a year.