'Bank of Jihad': Inside Pakistan’s shadowy terror finance grid

Produced by: BT Desk

State Paychecks

ISI channels $125–250 million yearly to terror groups, covering salaries, bonuses for suicide missions, and payments to local informants—making the state a primary financier.

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Crime Cartel

Militants rake in billions of rupees through heroin smuggling, ransom kidnappings, and car theft, turning crime into a parallel economy fueling attacks.

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Charity Scam

Terror-linked charities siphon zakat funds. In 2024, over 600 billion rupees in donations were collected, much of it diverted to jihadist networks.

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Aid Diversion

Global humanitarian aid, including from USAID, is rerouted to militant outfits via fake NGOs—weaponizing relief dollars against their own donors.

Cash Ghosting

High-denomination bills and counterfeit currency allow militants to move vast sums off the books, avoiding detection by banks or regulators.

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Diaspora Pipeline

Overseas donations from the Gulf, UK, and US-based Pakistanis flow directly to militant coffers, often via informal hawala networks.

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Guns for Drugs

Militants run an arms-for-narcotics barter system, exploiting border chaos to smuggle heroin into Iran and weapons back into Pakistan.

Extortion Economy

Locals and businesses pay militants “protection tax.” Extortion, bank heists, and blackmail provide steady, coercive income streams.

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Proxy Profits

Militants serve as Islamabad’s geopolitical tools—destabilizing India and Afghanistan while letting Pakistan position itself as both fire-starter and firefighter.

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