Commercial Bank International enters the world of digital asset payments

Commercial Bank International enters the world of digital asset payments

UAE based Commercial Bank International PJSC (‘CBI’), a corporate and retail bank headquartered in Dubai, and Fuze, MENA’s digital asset infrastructure provider, signed a Memorandum of Understanding that will allow both parties to jointly explore digital assets use cases under the comprehensive regulatory frameworks of the UAE.

The agreement between CBI and Fuze provides the foundations for innovative new use cases that leverage the potential of blockchain and digital assets, including investments and payments. Leveraging CBI’s extensive and robust track record in business and personal finance, with Fuze’s cutting-edge digital assets infrastructure and expertise, the two parties will collaborate to develop a suite of digital asset and blockchain products.

Driving this agreement is an underlying demand from customers for safe and regulated digital assets platforms. The collaboration emphasises responsible innovation and as a regulated business, Fuze is committed to structuring compliant products that foster trust and confidence in the UAE’s digital asset ecosystem.

On the occasion of the MoU signing, Giovanni Everduin, Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer of Commercial Bank International (CBI) stated, “Pooling the knowledge, expertise and resources of CBI and Fuze will help us explore a range of innovative new digital assets use cases for business and personal finance. This agreement will bring our customers closer to the many opportunities of digital assets, within a safe and regulated environment, in line with the UAE’s world-class virtual assets regulations. The signing of this MoU marks CBI’s commitment to furthering innovation and aligns perfectly with the UAE Government’s prioritisation of innovation as a pivotal force for driving positive change and economic development”.

Mohammed Ali Yusuf (Mo Ali Yusuf), CEO and Co-Founder of Fuze, added, “We’re thrilled to support CBI in connecting customers with future-facing financial products through the power of blockchain infrastructure. Collaborating with CBI marks a significant milestone for digital assets in the UAE. We look forward to supporting the Bank in providing greater financial accessibility and empowerment for their customers through powerful digital assets and cryptocurrency use cases”.

In December 2023, Fuze which had recently received a license from Dubai’s regulator, signed a similar MOU with UAE Fardan Exchange to allow the exchange to offer digital asset products such as buying, selling and transfer.

The Central Bank of UAE makes first official CBDC transaction to China

The Central Bank of UAE makes first official CBDC transaction to China

According to WAM news agency, as part of UAE’s Central Bank 50th anniversary, His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister, Chairman of the Presidential Court and Chairman of the Board of the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), made the first ever CBDC, digital currency cross border payment transaction to China utilizing the Mbridge Blockchain platform.

This amounts to a $13.6 million transaction sent directly to China through the ‘BIS M Bridge’ platform DLT.

Prior to this, The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) and the People’s Bank of China signed an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) to enhance technical and technological cooperation in the development of central bank digital currencies (CBDC), going beyond initial collaboration on mBridge CBDC project.

In September 2023, during a speech given by Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) CEO Eddie Yue, he discussed the whole sale CBDC ( Central Bank Digital Currency) project Mbridge stating that the launch of a minimal viable product ( MVP) would be soon, with participation of UAE Central Bank, Bank of China, BIS, Bank of Thailand and some new entrants.

The UAE Central Bank officials had called for a comprehensive regulatory framework for central digital currencies that would facilitate, accelerate and reduce the cost of cross border monetary operations.

R3 was chosen by UAE Central Bank as its technology partner to design and build a CBDC for the first phase of the central bank’s CBDC project because it is a permissioned based DLT (Distributed Ledger Technology) that decentralize assets privately and works well in regulated industries, but more importantly is its interoperability and asset fluidity.

Sheikh Mansour also witnessed the graduation of the first batch of 1,056 citizens from the ‘Ethraa’ program, who completed a high-level training and qualification program at the Emirates Institute of Finance.

The ceremony showcased the progress and development journey that the CBUAE has witnessed over 50 years, during which the apex bank has contributed to strengthening financial and monetary stability and driving the wheel of economic growth in the UAE. This is in addition to launching a package of innovative projects implemented by the Central Bank’s subsidiaries within the Financial Infrastructure Transformation Program (FIT program) to accelerate the digital transformation in the financial services sector as part of a wider strategy aimed at enabling the CBUAE to be among the top central banks globally.

Egyptian ADCB bank appoints blockchain expert to lead digital transformation

Egyptian ADCB bank appoints blockchain expert to lead digital transformation

Egypt’s Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank Egypt (ADCB) appoints blockchain expert, Ahmed Adel Mansour as the Head of Digital Transformation and Banking Services Development. The appointment is  part of its new phase that coincides with the launch of its five-year strategy until 2028. The strategy aims to create a qualitative shift in digital development and banking services, with the vision of being the best bank for its customers.

Mansour, who holds a PhD in financial technology and blockchain, has more than 23 years of banking experience, and a strong background in technology, transformation strategies, innovation, and business growth. He has held many positions of success, the most recent of which was the General Secretary and Assistant Chairman of the Board of Directors for Strategy at the Egyptian Post Authority. He also held several strategic positions in high-level bodies.

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank Egypt (ADCB) has announced the appointment of Ahmed Adel Mansour as the Head of Digital Transformation and Banking Services Development, as part of its new phase that coincides with the launch of its five-year strategy until 2028. The strategy aims to create a qualitative shift in digital development and banking services, with the vision of being the best bank for its customers.

Mansour has more than 23 years of banking experience, and a strong background in technology, transformation strategies, innovation, and business growth. He has held many positions of success, the most recent of which was the General Secretary and Assistant Chairman of the Board of Directors for Strategy at the Egyptian Post Authority. He also held several strategic positions in high-level bodies. Dr. Mansour has extensive experience in financial management, technology infrastructure, and digital program implementation. He holds a doctorate in financial technology and blockchain.

Mansour will oversee the sectors of digital transformation, banking operations, technology, and information systems, in a new step to continue the significant growth that ADCB has achieved in a short period, thanks to the efforts of the existing team of experts and the introduction of a new integrated vision for developing and digitizing banking operations and services, to achieve customer satisfaction, enhance their banking experience, and provide innovative solutions that meet their needs and exceed their expectations.

ADCB was one of the first banks in the UAE to join Blockchain enabled UAE Trade Connect to deal with fraud in invoices.

non-banking entity joins Blockchain UAE Trade Connect platform

non-banking entity joins Blockchain UAE Trade Connect platform

Beehive, a peer to peer lending platform, has become the second non-banking entity to join Blockchain enabled UAE Trade Connect platform. DP World Finance platform partnered with UAE trade Connect in November.

Beehive is regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA). It has rapidly grown into a leading disruptor in the fintech industry, providing an alternative finance solution for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the ever-growing lending ecosystem.

Beehive recently signed off with UAE Trade Connect (UTC) as its newest member and second non-bank entity to join its consortium. This strategic alliance is set to enhance trade finance operations and fortify the fight against fraud in the UAE. Beehive will leverage UTC’s platform to detect fraudulent and suspicious invoices and mitigate duplicate financing risks against bank invoices, leading to more flow of working capital finance for its customers.

Craig Moore, CEO and Founder of Beehive, said: “By joining the UTC platform, Beehive underscores its dedication to transparency and security in financial processes. We aim to revolutionize peer-to-peer lending alongside other UTC members by infusing greater transparency into the lending ecosystem.”

Zul Javaid, CEO of UTC, commented: “FinTech’s have emerged as a welcome addition in the GCC region enriching the financial landscape by providing innovative alternatives to traditional lending processes. With Beehive in our consortium this means that their working capital lending will be presented to our system daily, in real time, and will serve to de-risk their invoices as well as those of our member banks.”

UAE Trade Connect (UTC), Launched in 2021, was co-created by e& enterprise and the UAE banking industry and offers a technology solution to detect suspicious transactions and prevent fraud and duplication in real time.

This highly scalable advanced platform is completely cloud-native and incorporates cutting-edge technologies such as Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), and Artificial Intelligence (AI). The consortium currently houses 14 members which includes banks and NBFI’s while additional financial intuitions are piloting the platform.

Invest Bank became the 13th bank to join UAE Trade Connect which is paving the way for a secure, efficient and technologically advanced trade finance landscape in October.

Binance executes first crypto triparty agreement with a bank partner

Binance executes first crypto triparty agreement with a bank partner

Binance in a recent press release dated November 30th 2023 and coming out of Dubai UAE has announced that it has successfully executed the world’s first cryptocurrency triparty arrangement with a third party banking partner. As per the release, the solution enables institutional investors to keep trading collateral, off-exchange in the custody of a third party banking partner. This is the first in a series of pilot projects initiated by Binance, which is currently the only cryptocurrency exchange offering such a solution.

Binance does not mention the name of the bank, but states that this arrangement directly tackles the issue of counterparty risk, the primary concern for institutional investors today. It replicates a framework common in traditional financial markets, which enables investors to proportion their crypto-asset allocation based on their risk tolerance. Collateral held with the banking partner can be in the form of fiat equivalent such as Treasury Bills which has the added benefit of being a yielding asset.

Catherine Chen, Head of VIP and Institutional at Binance, said, “Counterparty risk has long been a concern of institutional investors across the industry. Our team of crypto natives and traditional finance professionals has been exploring a banking triparty agreement for more than a year to address their concern. We’ve developed a solution that ensures our institutional clients can optimize their collateral and cryptocurrency investments, modeled after the traditional markets’ trading conduct. We are in close discussions with an array of banking partners and institutional investors who have also expressed strong interest in participating.”

UAE and Chinese central Banks go beyond Mbridge CBDC project with new MOU on CBDC collaboration

UAE and Chinese central Banks go beyond Mbridge CBDC project with new MOU on CBDC collaboration

The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) and the People’s Bank of China has signed an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) to enhance technical and technological cooperation in the development of central bank digital currencies (CBDC), going beyond initial collaboration on mBridge CBDC project.

As per the UAE Central Bank press release, the signings will enhance the strategic partnership between the two friendly nations and expand the bilateral relations in the financial and economic fields.

His Excellency Khaled Mohamed Balama, Governor of CBUAE, and His Excellency Pan Gongsheng, Governor of the People’s Bank of China, signed the MOU in Hong Kong in presence of the UAE Counsel General in Hong Kong, H.E. Shaikh Saoud Ali Almualla.

The CBDC MoU aims to enhance collaboration central bank digital currency development and strengthen cooperation between CBUAE and the Digital Currency Institute of the People’s Bank of China in the field of financial technology. The MoU will enable the exchange of information on best practices and regulations relating to digital currencies and support the implementation of joint initiatives and projects, including the “mBridge” project which is a multi central bank digital currencies platform in facilitating cross-border trade payments instantly and securely.

The MoU also includes cooperation in training and skills development for specialists on both sides and the exchange of bilateral visits to discuss matters of common interest.

Commenting on the signing, H.E Khaled Mohamed Balama, Governor of CBUAE, stated, “We look forward to strengthening cooperation with our partners on innovation and solutions in financial technology including central bank digital currency to support the growth of our economy and society.”

Earlier,according to a Chinese media article, the Bank of China announced during The 3rd “Belt and Road” Summit Forum a list of 369 practical cooperation projects of which was an MOU signed with FAB bank of cooperation in digital currency.

Concurrently Standard Chartered announced its participation in the pilot testing program of China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) known as the digital Yuan (e-CNY or digital RMB). This move makes Standard Chartered the first foreign bank to engage with the country’s CBDC. According to the announcement, Standard Chartered, in collaboration with City Bank Clearing Services Co, will facilitate e-CNY transactions for its clients. It will allow them to purchase exchange and redeem e-CNY within their bank accounts.

 It is noteworthy that Standard Chartered’s backed digital asset platform, Zodia markets, received an In-Principle Approval (IPA) fulfilling the pre-requisites to receive a Financial Services Permission (FSP) for OTC broker-dealer in virtual assets by Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), Abu Dhabi’s international financial center.

Standard Chartered’s , venture arm SC Ventures, an innovation and fintech investment arm recently partnered with Japanese SBI Holdings to establish a Digital Asset Joint Venture investment company in UAE. The parties intend to capitalize the vehicle with $100 million. The company will invest in DeFi, tokenization, consumer payments and metaverse.

Blockchain deposit token payment platform Fluent to set up operations in UAE

Blockchain deposit token payment platform Fluent to set up operations in UAE

USA based Fluent Finance, a blockchain enabled fintech infrastructure company responsible for developing the connections from core banking to public layers, bridging Web2 to Web3 utilizing the Fluent Protocol, has joined UAE’s Ministry of Economy NextGEN FDI program as Fluent plans to launch its operations in Abu Dhabi and expand its workforce in the UAE to 125 people in the next five years.

Fluent is working to issue deposit tokens which are stable-valued, regulatory-compliant digital assets interoperable with core banking systems. With Fluent, banks may issue fiat-equivalent tokens directly to public blockchains based on outstanding customer deposits and central bank-issued CBDCs.

Fluent will use its new UAE headquarters to deploy and scale its proprietary Fluent Economic Bridge, which can be used by importers and exporters to settle transactions via stablecoins or, increasingly, deposit tokens.

They are already piloting the platform in Kenya, and now hope to develop a digital trade corridor with the UAE.

Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, said Fluent’s participation in the NextGen FDI initiative underlines the UAE’s status as a hub for global trade and a supportive ecosystem for new technologies such as blockchain: “The UAE has become a prominent advocate for the modernization of the multilateral trading system, as well as a supportive place for the development of the tools and applications that can deliver it. I am optimistic about the possibilities of the Fluent Economic Bridge, and the potential for digital currencies to improve the efficiency and accessibility of global supply chains. In the build-up to the World Trade Organisation’s 13th Ministerial Conference in Abu Dhabi in February next year, encouraging platforms such as those developed by Fluent will offer an important proof point for the UAE’s leadership on trade technology.”

Bradley Allgood, Fluent Finance’s Chief Executive Officer, said the UAE was the obvious place in which to launch Fluent Economic Bridge. “The UAE offers exactly the kind of supportive, enabling environment that Web3 companies such as Fluent require. The combination of thoughtful regulation, forward-looking vision and advanced technology ambitions means we have the right foundations on which to develop our product and grow our organization. Importantly, this is also an important trade crossroads, which provides a multitude of opportunities to deploy our platform. We genuinely believe that, with the right support, we can transform Fluent Economic Bridge into the next unicorn.”

Bahrain ABC Bank goes live with JP Morgan’s Blockchain payments

Bahrain ABC Bank goes live with JP Morgan’s Blockchain payments

Bahrain based ABC bank after two years of piloting, J.P. Morgan’s Coin Systems, a blockchain based permissioned system that serves as a payment rail and deposit account ledger and sits within Onyx by J.P. Morgan has gone live with the blockchain payments solution.

Prior to this ABC bank had been piloting GCC region’s first blockchain based cross border instant payment solutions as well as CBDC project with the Central Bank of Bahrain. In 2020 The Central Bank of Bahrain collaborated with J P Morgan and Bank ABC in a pilot scheme to introduce instantaneous cross border payment solution leveraging state of the art technology and digital currency. The pilot was successfully completed in 2022. 

As such the soft launch of the new blockchain payment service by ABC Bank, is in close collaboration with the Central Bank of Bahrain.  The Central Bank of Bahrain has supported the project by integrating and scaling the blockchain payments solution within the Kingddom’s payments landscape.

On this occasion, His Excellency the Governor of the Central Bank of Bahrain, Mr. Rasheed AlMaraj, stated, “After working closely with JP Morgan and Bank ABC over the past two years to experiment the execution of cross-border commercial transactions between Bahrain and the U.S., leveraging the J.P. Morgan Coin System, we are pleased to witness the soft launch of this innovative banking solution by a Bahraini-based bank.  This initiative aligns with the CBB’s strategic vision to embrace innovation and digitalize the Kingdom’s financial services sector by eliminating inefficiencies that exist in traditional cross-border payment railways, facilitating trade between Bahrain and the U.S., and thereby inducing economic activity. We commend Bank ABC on their commitment to enhance their banking offerings by leveraging advanced global technologies.”

Mr. Sael Al Waary, Bank ABC Group CEO, said: “As an international bank operating across five continents, Bank ABC Group is committed to introducing innovative products to our home market and across our wider network. Offering high-value cross-border payments via the J.P. Morgan Coin Systems service, allows us to reduce traditional settlement periods considerably as well as being more cost-effective for our clients. We remain steadfast as a key enabler of Bahrain’s vision for a digital economy. We would like to thank our partners the Central Bank of Bahrain for their commitment and leadership and J.P. Morgan for their leading role in advancing cross-border payments for banking services.”

Naveen Mallela, Global Head of Onyx Coin Systems, said “Bank ABC has been one of the earliest adopters of the JPM Coin offering and we are delighted to launch the first of its kind commercial payment offering between J.P. Morgan and Bank ABC using distributed ledger rails. This enables cross-border commercial transactions to be executed between Bahrain and US corridors instantly, atomically and with certainty.”

While the offering has been launched with USD and locations involving Bahrain, US, UK, Singapore, Hong Kong, additional locations and currencies, notably Euro, are in the pipeline. Going forward with the planned introduction of programmable payment offerings, it will enable mutual corporate clients to leverage event driven and automated payouts enabling a dynamic and real time treasury management.

Oman Central Bank reviews stance on crypto in its 3rd meeting for 2023

Oman Central Bank reviews stance on crypto in its 3rd meeting for 2023

In a news piece on Oman News agency, the Board of governors of the Central Bank of Oman, held their third meeting for 2023 where the followed up on developments as well as reviewed the international stance on cryptocurrencies as well as related studies conducted by the executive management team at the central bank on cryptocurrencies.

This comes as Oman works on its virtual asset regulations, having  at the end of July 2023 announced a public consultation paper on virtual assets regulatory framework by the Oman Capital Market Auhtority.The Capital Market Authority, Sultanate of Oman (CMA), which regulates and develops Oman’s financial markets for the capital market and insurance sectors, had earlier announced its plans to establish the new regulatory framework for Virtual Assets (VA) and Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP).The proposed new regulatory framework is envisaged to cover activities such as crypto assets, tokens, crypto exchanges, and initial coin offerings, among others. CMA had invited relevant stakeholders to provide their views and comments no later than mid August 2023.Oman has also been at the forefront of crypto mining in the region and in August 2023 announced the first phase of Asyad Group crypto mining center was launched in the Free zone in Salalah. Built and managed by Exahertz, a subsidiary of Afaq Advance Technologies firm, the first phase was inaguarated during a ceremony attended by top Omani governmental officials. Later on in the same month Oman-headquartered Green Data City and Abu Dhabi’s Phoenix Group have signed an agreement to develop a 150MW crypto-mining farm in Oman. The new farm will be set up in Green Data City and should be fully operational by Q2 2024, becoming one of the largest crypto-mining data centres in the region.Even in June 2023 the Oma Capital Markets Authority published a decision with regards Instructions for registering virtual asset service providers and applying AML/CFT requirements.So it would seem that while the Central Bank of Oman is reviewing cryptocurrencies both from a local and international perspective, the country is moving forward with its crypto and virtual assets plans.

Taurus digital asset custodian to expand in UAE after investments and partnership with Deutsche bank

Taurus digital asset custodian to expand in UAE after investments and partnership with Deutsche bank

As Taurus, digital asset infrastructure provider, offer digital custody and tokenization services, partners with Deutsche Bank, it plans to expand into the UAE among other countries.

Founded in 2018, Taurus offers enterprise-grade digital asset infrastructure for the issuance, safeguarding, and trading of various digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, tokenized assets, NFTs, and digital currencies. The company’s product portfolio includes Taurus-Protect, a secure storage solution used by over 25 financial institutions and corporations in Europe, and Taurus-Capital, which facilitates the issuance and management of NFTs and tokenized assets on public and private blockchains.

Deutsche Bank’s partnership with Taurus builds on the bank’s recent initiatives in the digital asset space. By leveraging Taurus’ technology, the bank aims to meet the evolving needs of its clients in the digital asset ecosystem.

Paul Maley, the global head of securities services at Deutsche Bank, emphasized the significance of adapting to the growing digital asset market. As the digital asset space is expected to encompass trillions of dollars of assets, custodians must provide the necessary support to investors and corporations.

This partnership follows Deutsche Bank’s previous investment in Taurus. The bank participated in Taurus’ $65 million Series B funding round earlier this year, alongside Credit Suisse, Pictet Group, and Arab Bank Switzerland. Taurus plans to utilize the funding to further develop its digital asset platform and expand globally, with new offices in Europe, the UAE, the Americas, and Southeast Asia.