UAE based International Financial Centre (DIFC), has launched its “DIFC Metaverse Platform” and the first phase is a metaverse accelerator program where it will choose 50 metaverse projects to help develop the metaverse sector in UAE.
The platform is part of a comprehensive strategy being developed by Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) to accelerate Dubai’s status as a global metaverse leader.
The DIFC Metaverse Platform is aligned with the Dubai Metaverse Strategy, which aims to add $4 billion to Dubai’s GDP, support 40,000 virtual jobs by 2030 and attract 1,000 companies specialized in blockchain and metaverse technologies. The platform also supports the objective of the recently launched Dubai Economic Agenda D33 to generate economic value worth AED100 billion from digital transformation annually.
The Metaverse Accelerator Program, the first initiative to be launched under the umbrella of the platform, will start accepting applications this month. In the coming years, the program seeks to attract more than 500 applications, identify 50 of the most promising graduates from the program and stimulate investment opportunities that will help the sector grow.
The Metaverse Accelerator Program will run over a period of six months, during which the cohort of start-ups will be introduced to training and workshops to upskill and reskill themselves in both technical and intrapersonal aspects of the metaverse. The program also aims to facilitate partnerships between start-ups and corporates to create proofs-of-concept and new metaverse solutions.
The program demonstrates DIFC’s commitment to support innovative metaverse start-ups by introducing them to the region’s largest players. The program also helps them explore partnerships, gain exposure to investors, access a regulatory sandbox and obtain marketing support.
His Excellency Omar Sultan Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications, Chairman of the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, Vice Chairman of the Dubai Higher Committee for Future Technology and Digital Economy, stated that the UAE adopts advanced technologies in its aim to keep pace with global changes, reflecting the directives of its leadership, in transforming the country and Dubai to become a leading hub for utilizing the best technology and developing capabilities.
H.E Al Olama added that this Metaverse platform is the first in a series of initiatives that aim to strengthen Dubai’s position as a global platform for the latest digital trends and accelerate the pace to achieve the objectives of the Dubai Metaverse Strategy.
Arif Amiri, CEO of DIFC Authority, said: “The Dubai government has shown great foresight in introducing a metaverse strategy that has the objective of making the emirate a global hub for technology and innovation. The development of the integrated DIFC Metaverse Platform will accelerate the achievements of Dubai’s aspirations in this sector. The initiative is a natural extension of our Innovation Hub proposition that has shaped the technology and innovation landscape in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region.”
The DIFC Metaverse Platform includes three key initiatives. The first is an accelerator program with a dedicated physical studio for metaverse technology that will promote the development of a creator community and venture building. The platform will also address the metaverse policy development and legislation on open data, digital identity and company law frameworks in the metaverse. Further, the initiative will foster the development of a metaverse community that will explore ways to enhance the metaverse experience for customers.
UAE based Venom Ventures Fund, a Web3 and blockchain innovation fund managed by Abu Dhabi-based investment fund manager Iceberg Capital Limited, has invested $5 million in Everscale, a premier blockchain platform that aims to solve the scalability issues bogging down the Web3 industry.
The $5 million will be used by Everscale to expand its development teams and boost the number of projects.
Everscale has been diligently working on expanding its reach and integrating its technology solutions in Asian countries over the past two years, while also building a strong community. Its dynamic sharding technology enables it to efficiently adapt to varying workloads, thus making it an easy and practical option for creating large-scale Web3 and other types of applications.
Venom Ventures Fund Chairman Peter Knez, ex-CIO of BlackRock, said, “For us, this is a strategic investment aimed at the technological development of projects and teams around technologies that we focus on and actively develop. In particular, we are talking about the Venom blockchain project and its ecosystem, which is planned to be launched soon and for which Everscale is a potential Layer 2 solution.”
Venom and Everscale teams will be working together on the further development of the core and the ecosystem bringing the adoption of blockchain closer to real business use cases. Current initiatives such as digital asset tokenization platforms, a full framework for CBDCs and stablecoins and payment solutions with crypto to fiat gateways are already making good headway.
Commenting on the investment, Everscale Foundation Board Member Moon Young Lee said, “This is a milestone for both the Everscale and Venom networks. The technological capabilities of Everscale are immense but they have been underappreciated by a wider audience. Now, Everscale will be able to operate as an experimental network where updates and complex technical solutions can be introduced before they are brought to Venom. This investment will allow Everscale to gain the recognition that it deserves.”
Designed as a network of blockchains, Venom has no limit to the number of other auxiliary networks at the Layer 2 level and no limit to the economy type or operation at the Layer 2. This particular architecture means that mass adoption is now achievable on the Venom blockchain.
Everscale is ideal for hosting high-scale web3 and other load-intensive projects. Over the past two years, Everscale has emerged as one of the leading blockchains in Asia, with a thriving community and robust ecosystem of DeFi platforms.
Bahrain real estate developer Bin Faqeeh Real estate Investment Company announced that clients can buy apartments or houses using cryptocurrencies. Bin Faqeeh will be offering crypto payment services with Bahrain financial service provider EazyPay POS terminals.
Binance Co-Founder and CEO, Changpeng Zhao tweeted about Bin Faqeeh Real Estate Company accepting Crypto Payments via Binance Pay through Eazy Financial Services. EazyPay and Binance had signed a partnership in Q4 2022 to offer crypto payment services to EazyPay’s 5000 plus POS terminals.
Prior to this Bahrain CoinMENA crypto broker partnered with Carlton Real Estate, a Bahrain-based real estate agency, allowing clients to buy real estate property using crypto assets. Under the partnership, Carlton real estate would accept stablecoins like USDT and USDC.
The UAE as well has been offering clients the ability to pay for real estate in cryptocurrencies. In May 2022 UAE Properties developer Nakheel and Abu Dhabi based crypto exchange Hayvn partnered to offer crypto payment options for Nakheel clients. Nakheel clients are able to pay for their rent, service fee, and real estate purchases in cryptocurrency.
Other real estate developers in UAE also are offering crypto payment services, such as DAMAC, SAMENA developers and more. In March UAE based Real estate and industry experts estimated that crypto payments for Dubai real estate increased by 300 percent in 2022. Majority of buyers are using stablecoins such as Tether, USDT as well as Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Even UAE Property Consultancy firm, Your place partnered with Utrust, a cryptocurrency payment solution designed to modernize the finance and payments industry offers clients the ability to pay for properties in Dubai UAE using cryptocurrencies. Recently Utrust is now enabling crypto payments for luxury hotels in the UAE. BM Hotels & Resorts luxury hotel chain is accepting digital currencies using Utrust.
In an SEC Filing dated January 27th 2022, USA based Marathon digital Holdings, a digital asset mining entity, announced that it had entered into a shareholder’s agreement with FSI ( FS Innovation), the BTC mining subsidiary of UAE ADQ a sovereign fund, to form an Abu Dhabi, ( ADGM (Abu Dhabi Global Markets) based company.
As per the filing, the joint UAE ADGM based company will establish and operate one or more mining facilities for digital assets. The business entity will be in the field of digital asset/crypto mining.
The initial phase will consist of two digital asset mining sites comprising 250 MW (megawatts) in Abu Dhabi UAE.
Marathon Holdings will own 20% of the joint company in UAE only. The cost of the project will be $406 million.
This new comes after UAE based Phoenix Technology which embarked on establishing a $2 billion crypto-mining farm in the UAE, announced in November 2022, that the biggest crypto mining project in the region will be completed in the next six months, Q2 of 2023. The press release at the time noted, “The project will be finalized within six months, giving the region a taste of technological advancement and development.”
In February 2022 Phoenix had announced it was part of the group of entities developing the UAE crypto mining farm in an interview with well renowned crypto and Blockchain lawyer Irena Heaver.
Crypto mining is an integral part of the development of crypto economies, and the MENA region is opening up to exactly these economies. Already the GCC and MENA region has become an attractive destination for crypto mining.
During Binance Week 2022, Khalifa AlJaziri, AlShehhi, Commercial Affairs Regulatory Sector Projects advisor at the Ministry of Economy in UAE, claimed that the Dubai World Trade Center Authority (DWTCA) would be legislating the crypto mining sector. He stated, “We are setting the guidelines and rules needed to regulate crypto mining within this crypto framework.
The UAE is not the only country that has shown interest in crypto mining. Oman Investment Authority (OIA) took part in a $350mn equity round in Crusoe Energy Systems. The US firm helps oil and gas producers cut flaring by using stranded natural gas to power cryptocurrency mining. Crusoe systems set up operations in Oman as well.
US based Tykhe Block Ventures which recently raises $30 million for its Blockchain growth fund is allocating $10 million of that to Blockchain and Web3 start-ups in MENA region.
Tykhe Block Ventures (part of Heru Finance) is a blockchain-centric multi-strategy fund established in Wyoming, USA. The fund invests in ventures within the Web 3.0/ blockchain sector with a focus on decentralization technologies, digital assets, and their key enabling infrastructure. The fund has invested in 25+ blockchain projects including dWalletLabs, Trust Machines, FanTiger, and RMRK.
The fund is led by Prashant Malik, well-regarded in the technology world as the Inventor of Cassandra (Now Apache Cassandra). He is also one of the top angel investors in SEA (50+ investments, 8 unicorns).
As per their LinkedIn post the company states it is thrilled to announce the first close of our $30 Mn Blockchain Growth Fund.
In addition, Tykhe is also in the process of setting up an office in Dubai UAE and plans to launch a $100 million fund later in 2023.
The company was founded in 2021 by tech investor Prashant Malik. Malik believes that the blockchain sector will prove resilient to the fallout from the bankruptcy of crypto exchange FTX, stating that the companies that have imploded of late are all centralised entities and, therefore, not related or correlated to the decentralisation ethos of blockchain technology.
Prashant Malik in a press release published on Cointelegraph MENA Arabic stated, “ In 2021 My partners and I launched a Blockchain Fund which did well, which led us to believe in the importance of funds to grow the Blockchain sector. We launched $30 million fund because investors are interested just like the interest was in social media when it first started.”
Investors in MENA region tend to increase their investments in Blockchain sector as per a recent survey by LaraontheBlock.
In a recent survey entitled “MENA Investor Survey 2022-2023 for crypto Blockchain sector” carried out by laraontheblock with 83 MENA venture capitalists, fund managers, and family offices, 50% of those surveyed stated they will be allocating more funds to blockchain and crypto projects and entities in 2023. 19% of those surveyed stated in 2022 they had invested more than 50% of allocated capital and funds into crypto and Blockchain projects.
The findings of the “MENA Investor Survey 2022-2023 for crypto Blockchain sector” sheds light on the different areas of interest for MENA investors which will give startups and entities a better view on whom and where capital will be heading by investors in the MENA region.
This comes as cryptocurrency adoption has skyrocketed in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. According to a survey by blockchain analytics platform Chainalysis, MENA countries have the fastest-growing cryptocurrency industry in the world, accounting for 9.2% of global digital currency transactions from July 2021 to June 2022.
Vast Majority of MENA VCs invested in crypto and Blockchain in 2022
75% of survey respondents confirmed that they invested in crypto and blockchain entities in 2022, while only 25% stated they hadn’t. The MENA region has become the center for crypto trading, investing and regulation. The UAE led crypto regulation in 2022 and was the first country in the region to launch a blockchain strategy back in 2017.
The stance taken by MENA investors in the survey is in line with global figures. In 2022, despite the slowdown in crypto VC funding, it exceeded the figure for 2021. Cointelegraph Research’s VC Database showed that a total of $36.1 billion was raised in 2022. This is in contrast to the $30.3 billion worth of funding in 2021.
Crypto projects globally attracted $19.9 billion in venture capital (VC) investments in the first nine months of 2022, 41% higher than a year ago, according to Pitchbook data.
Crypto and Blockchain entities are the Future
54% of respondents replied that they invested in crypto and Blockchain entities because it is the future, while 42% stated it was because these technologies solve real business problems. Only 18% believed that it was because while risky the return on investment was high. ( note that more than one response for some respondents
The MENA region witnessed sizable investments in crypto and Blockchain entities in 2022. For example crypto exchange RAIN received $110 million in investments and included investors from MENA such as MEVP. BitOasis also raised $30 million with UAE based Wamda Capital and others.
Significant developments in the UAE such as the launch of Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), and the announcement of the Dubai metaverse strategy, which aims to attract more than 1,000 blockchain and metaverse companies as well as support more than 40,000 virtual jobs by 2030 has also played a role in enticing investors towards blockchain, crypto and metaverse as did the launch of Crypto Oasis ecosystem and the DMCC crypto center bringing in 1400 crypto and Blockchain entities to the
19% of surveyed spent over 50% of their capital on Blockchain and crypto entities
Interestingly when asked what percentage of capital or funds available in 2022 was invested in crypto and blockchain, a whopping 19 percent stated that they had invested more than 50 percent of funds into crypto and Blockchain entities. While the majority 33% invested between 5-15% of their capital into crypto and blockchain entities.
27% invested between 1-5 percent of their capital into crypto and Blockchain, while 21% invested less than 1%.
While the percentages maybe small compared to other areas, Nickel Digital Asset Management noted that UAE institutional investors, family offices, and wealth managers plan to increase their exposure to crypto dramatically by 2023. And while sovereign funds do not yet see digital assets as investable with just 7% of global sovereign investors have any exposure to digital assets through investments in blockchain companies, this is changing.
In May 2022, J.P. Morgan’s global investment strategy outlook elevated digital assets as the preferred alternative asset class alongside hedge funds for 2022. For the first time in history digital assets displaced other alternative strategies. In the report it is noted that digital assets are expected to offer the greatest potential for generating alpha and hedge funds expect as much as 10 percent of their strategy to include crypto.
A PWC Global Crypto Hedge Fund report in August 2022, found that more than a third of traditional hedge funds now invest in digital assets, this was double the figure of 2021
Global crypto leader at PWC left his role to set up a $75 million digital assets fund Nine Blocks Capital in Dubai UAE. Henri Arsalanian, founder noted that it was Dubai’s crypto openness that influenced his decision.
Majority of MENA Investors invested in Blockchain infrastructure
MENA investors surveyed were asked where they allocated funds in 2022. 64% of respondents stated that capital was invested in Blockchain infrastructure projects. Following Blockchain infrastructure was DeFi. 38% of respondents stated they allocated funds to DeFi projects. Equally 33-36% invested in metaverse and crypto assets.
In addition 22% replied they invested in Non-Fungible tokens or NFT projects, while 17-18% of respondents stated investments went into e-gaming, tokenization projects, crypto mining and blockchain crypto payments.
Only 8% stated they invested in decentralized messaging and social media platforms.
The findings of the survey fall much in line with Cointelegraph’ s recent blockchain funding VC report which found that blockchain Infrastructure projects took half the pot of investments in November 2022. While the Web3 sector saw the most deals closed. The global blockchain infrastructure sector secured $483.9 million in venture capital in 2022.
According to Galaxy Ventures, Crypto and Blockchain sector saw $5.5 billion of venture capital invested in Q3 2022 through 518 deals. Despite the QoQ (quarter on quarter) decrease, the $5.5 billion invested in Q3 is $2 billion greater than the 7-year average of $3.1 billion and more than $2 billion higher than the 2020 peak.
MENA investors will invest more in 2023
51% of those surveyed stated they would allocate more funds to blockchain and crypto entities in 2023. Only 15% replied they would not. In addition 33% were unsure. This means that potentially 84% of those surveyed could be investing more in blockchain and crypto in 2023.
Already investment companies such as TradeDog Group, the parent company of TD VC, have launched new funds. TradeDg Group launched their $100 Million Web3 blockchain special situation fund. The fund will re-structure and invest in projects with good products and businesses but struggling token markets.
Even UAE Cypher Capital VC announced in December 2022 the launch of a new $200 million fund which will focus on infrastructure and middleware investments in Web3. At the time they had invested in Rekt Studios and Fenix Games, while UAE Shorooq Partners also announced in March 2022 that they would be investing $150 million in Web3 startups. Many other investors across the MENA region have been following suite including Mubadala and G42 both based out of UAE.
Global players such as Goldman Sachs plans to spend tens of millions of dollars to buy or invest in crypto companies after the collapse of the FTX exchange hit valuations and dampened investor interest. Goldman has invested in 11 digital asset companies that provide services such as compliance, cryptocurrency data and blockchain management.
MENA investors view Blockchain infrastructure as biggest growth sector in 2023
According to 29% of survey respondents, Blockchain infrastructure projects will witness the biggest growth in 2023. Data gathered by BuyShares.co.nz, found that the global spending on blockchain solutions is expected to surge by 235% and reach $14.4bn by 2023.
Following, 21% view metaverse projects as high growth sector technology. This is in line with findings from Grand View Research, which states the global metaverse market is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 39.4% from 2022 to 2030.
Meanwhile 18% of those surveyed think DeFi will witness strong growth. DeFi has been the largest market cap activity within Web3, with a peak total value locked (TVL) of over $175 billion in 2021 shrinking to $39 billion in 2022. Yet Digital asset research firm Reflexivity Research in its recently published 2022 Annual Year in Review / Forward Outlook 2023 believes that given the blow to trust in CEXs, investors will be drawn to decentralized alternatives. The report believes DeFi TVL could make its way back to $75 billion or $100 billion.
12% of those surveyed view blockchain and crypto payments as one of the growth sectors for 2023. Cross-border payments and settlements are considered the most prominent blockchain use case. According to the IDC Worldwide Blockchain Spending Guide, Blockchain enabled cross border payments accounted for 15.9% of the $4.67-billion blockchain market in 2021. Juniper Research estimates that B2B cross-border payments on blockchain will account for 11% of the total B2B international payments by 2024.
When it comes to investment in tokenization projects 8% of those surveyed believe that tokenization sector will be a growth sector in 2023. 5% of those surveyed believe NFT sector will grow in 2023, only 3% of those surveyed believe crypto mining will be a growth sector.
Conclusion
In conclusion from the responses of 83 VCs, investment funds, across the MENA region that included names such as Oman Investment Authority, Equinox, Synaptech Capital, CypherCapital, Helion Ventures, Carter Capital, AlIImtiaz Investment Group, True Global Ventures, Roshan Investments, Crypto Oasis, Ghaf Capital Investments, Vault Investments, and many more, the reflection is a positive outlook when it comes to crypto and Blockchain and a growing interest in investing in projects. So while 2022 might have been one of the toughest years on crypto and Blockchain, it has not killed the appetite of investors in MENA!
As per an article in Bloomberg, Bitcoin and Ethereum options exchange Deribit, is setting to enter Dubai UAE in Q3 2023, as UAE regulators provide the regulatory environment that will allow them to operate in the country.
As per the report, the exchange plans to open a Dubai office staffed by a team of 10 people composed of both local hires and the company’s existing talent, Deribit Chief Legal, Compliance and Regulatory Officer David Dohmen told Bloomberg. The move could take place as soon as this summer.
The Panamanian exchange is also planning expansion into Brazil, the U.K. and Singapore, said Dohmen.
The total volume of bitcoin options on Deribit rose to $4.25 billion during the week of January 15th 2023, the highest since second week of November 2022.
That’s a 375% rise from the low of $895 million registered in the final week of December, according to data source provider Amberdata. Deribit is the world’s largest crypto options exchange, accounting for nearly 90% of the global trading volume and open interest.
The impressive recovery in volume has mainly been driven by an uptick in demand for call options or bullish bets offering protection against price rallies.
“The share of calls relative to put volume is currently at more than 66%, its highest level in over a year,” analysts at Kaiko Research said in a note to clients on Monday. “This is yet another indicator that sentiment has improved in January.”
The dollar value locked in the number of open options contracts, also known as open interest, has increased to $5.92 billion, the highest since Oct. 27. Bitcoin’s (BTC) price has rallied by nearly 40% this month.
Options are derivative contracts that offer the purchaser the right but not the obligation to buy or sell the underlying asset at a predetermined price on or before a specific date. The call option gives the right to buy, while put options offer the right to sell.
Options are widely used by both institutions and individual investors and often provide an accurate picture of sentiment in the broader market.
Ericssonand Bahrain telecom operator, Batelco, part of the Beyon Group, have deployed Blockchain enabled Ericsson Customer Acceptance platform. As per the press release, the customer acceptance platform isan enterprise blockchain solution for the automated collection of acceptance records upon fulfilment of agreed project deliverables. Batelco is the first telecommunication service provider to deploy the solution.
Ericsson Customer Acceptance (ECA) provides significant and impactful results to the customer acceptance process. It reduces the time spent on acceptance-related activities per site by up to 42 percent, thereby achieving faster time-to-market with accuracy. ECA also simplifies the process by providing a single interface for submitting and approving acceptance documents and displaying real-time status of every acceptance item submitted to the platform. Combined with other services and software capabilities, ECA also helps reduce CO2 emissions by removing the need for on-site customer visits to complete the acceptance process.
Batelco General Manager Technology Rashed Mohamed stated, ” Batelco is at the forefront of technological innovation, constantly seeking new ways to attain efficiency and effectiveness. We are proud to be the first telecommunication service provider to deploy the Ericsson Customer Acceptance platform. Within a short period of time, we have witnessed the benefits of deploying it. By simplifying our daily activities and achieving quicker installations and project completions, we can bring the latest technologies to our customers more efficiently.. We commend Ericsson for constantly offering new technological solutions that benefit the operations of their customers.”
Apart from enabling site quality assurance and improving the acceptance flow, blockchain secures the integrity of acceptance documentation and enables transparency and traceability between the parties involved.
Nicolas Blixell, Vice President, and Head of Ericsson GCC at Ericsson, added, “The Ericsson Customer Acceptance solution aims to provide speed, accuracy, sustainability, and efficiency to the operations between Ericsson and our customers. It strengthens trust, adds immutability and security, and provides full traceability end-to-end. Deploying the Ericsson Customer Acceptance solution with Batelco has demonstrated the benefits and efficiencies that can be achieved in a quick, secure, and resourceful manner. We look forward to future implementations of this blockchain-based solution to drive innovation and customer satisfaction. “
During the UAE Digital Economy Council’s first meeting chaired by Omar bin Sultan Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy, and Remote Work Applications, seven sub-committees were created including one for Blockchain, another for Fintech and one for investing in digital economy.
The first meeting which discussed consolidating the UAE’s status as a global hub for the digital economy and a platform for digital innovation to boost the national economy, emphasized the importance of empowering national talents to excel technological areas and augmenting the digital economy’s contribution to non-oil GDP.
During the meeting, the council approved the formation of seven sub-committees led by members of the council, to cover all goals of the UAE digital economy strategy in areas such as technological infrastructure and blockchain, e-commerce, financial technologies, investment in the digital economy sector, attracting skills and supporting start-ups.
Additionally, a committee was formed to specialize in digital economy statistics and prepare an annual report to measure the performance and indicators of the digital economy in the UAE and ensure sustainable progress in the digital economy.
The council also discussed strategic performance indicators for the digital economy and ways to enhance the UAE’s global position in developing the future digital economy model.
UAE Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA ) publishes the Cabinet Resolution No. (111)of 2022 regarding the regulation of virtual assets and their service providers and has noted which entities it will regulate and the penalties that can reach $2.7 million.
As per the resolution, the regulation of virtual assets and their providers will be overseen in the UAE by the Securities and Commodities Authority, as well as the Central Bank of the UAE. It will also include local licensing authorities that include free zones, and financial free zones.
As per the resolution virtual assets are defined as a digital representation of the value that can be traded or transferred digitally, can be used for investment purposes, and does not include digital representations of paper currencies, securities or other funds.
The activities that fall under virtual assets include the provision of virtual asset services in the UAE.
As for virtual assets service providers , they are any legal person practicing one or more activities related to virtual assets or the related processes for the benefit or on behalf of a person, such as the operator of the virtual assets platform, the broker of virtual assets and the custodian of virtual assets, and any other activities in accordance with the provisions of this Resolution.
The resolution defined Virtual Assets Platform as a digital platform for listing, trading and transferring ownership of virtual assets, conducting related clearing and settlement processes, and storing and saving information and data through distributed ledger technology or any other similar technology.
According to the resolution it aims to develop the legislative system of the virtual assets sector in the State, its related activities and service providers in a way that defines and guarantees the rights and duties of all related parties.
The resolution will also regulate the virtual assets sector in the State and its related activities and service providers and will be compliant with all all provisions of the Federal Decree-Law No. (20) of 2018 concerning Combating Money Laundering Crimes, Combating Financing of Terrorism and Financing of Illegal Organizations, as amended, and its executive regulations and applicable legislations related to the sector.
The resolution also seeks to protect investors in virtual assets from illegal practices.
The virtual asset regulation will cover all entities within the UAE including free zones, except for those within financial free zones such as ADGM and DIFC, which work with entities offering digital securities and digital commodity contracts.
There is an exception for entities working in the virtual assets for payment purposes, and stored value facilities. They will fall under the jurisdiction of the Central Bank of UAE. However virtual asset platforms are not included under Central Bank jurisdiction.
As per the decision no one can engage in virtual asset activities unless they are licensed. The UAE Securities and Commodities Authority will offer licenses for the following activities:
a. provision of Virtual Asset Platform operation and management services;
b. provision of exchange services between one or more forms of virtual assets;
c. provision of Virtual Asset transfer services;
d. provision of brokerage services in trading operations in Virtual Assets;
e. provision of Virtual Asset custody, management, and control services; and
f. provision of financial services related to offering and/or selling by the issuer to the Virtual assets, or participating in providing those services.
Licensed entities must meet minimum requirements such as not being a sanctioned or on terrorism lists especially those concerned with combating money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism and illegal organizations, and not be subject to any criminal investigations within or outside the State during the submission or study of the application for registration, and that no final judicial judgment has been rendered against him in the crime of money laundering, financing terrorism, or financing illegal organizations;
In addition the entities seeking license need to implement technical systems that are able to protect investor data in accordance with international best practices, current technology and/or cybersecurity standards.
These entities also need to meet the capital requirements and conditions, credit guarantees, insurances, compliance management systems and other rules in accordance with the executive resolutions issued by the Authority.
Finally the UAE SCA has the authority to suspend listing or trading virtual assets, or the technologies used by these services providers, or the operation of virtual asset platforms.
The authority can impose financial fines not exceeding AED (10,000,000) ten million AED equivalent to $2.7 million.
This is the first time that the UAE has endorsed its onshore virtual asset regulations, it will now be time to see who can meet these regulations and who will not.
