e& life, which leverages cutting edge technology to offer fintech, entertainment, retail and mobility services, the business pillar of e& that brings the next-generation digital world to the consumer’s fingertips, has joined theDubai FinTech Summit (DFS), organised by Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), the leading global Financial Centre in the MEASA region. As a Powered By sponsor, e& life is dedicated to supporting innovative and future-thinking businesses on a global scale.

e& life fintech arm, e& money, has become a regional powerhouse, known for its user-friendly mobile financial services and its position as the UAE’s fastest-growing issuer of Mastercard debit cards.

Mohammad Alblooshi, Chief Executive Officer at DIFC Innovation Hub, said, “The path to true innovation lies in collaboration and the Dubai FinTech Summit strives to bring together global leaders, innovators and disruptive start-ups to shape the future of finance. The alliance between the summit and e& life demonstrates our mutual commitment to fostering a dynamic FinTech ecosystem to strengthen Dubai’s existing reputation as a leading business destination. Transforming challenges into opportunities, our goal is to create the most advanced, inclusive and technologically empowered financial community.”

Khalifa Al Shamsi, Chief Executive Officer at e& life, said, “The Middle East is at the forefront of a major transformation in financial services delivery, driven by technology shifting from traditional to innovative solutions. As a pioneer in the region’s flourishing FinTech sector, e& is driven by a bold vision to lead this change.

“Through strategic partnerships, we aim to fast-track progress and take the region’s FinTech potential to new heights. This partnership represents a valuable opportunity for both e& and its FinTech portfolio under the business pillar e& life to collectively imagine new possibilities, inspire breakthrough ideas, and catalyse impactful innovations. By bringing together the talent and resources within our ecosystems, we can accelerate the journey toward a future where financial services truly empower people across societies. We look forward to contributing our expertise to shaping discussions that will steer the direction of the industry and play a role in realising the UAE’s aspiration to become a global hub for financial innovation.”

In line with the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33) to position Dubai as the top four global financial hub by 2033, the 2nd edition of the Dubai FinTech Summit is designed to encourage cross-border collaboration and innovation, pivotal to transforming the global FinTech sector. It presents a unique opportunity to explore emerging FinTech trends and their potential to drive financial progress in the MEASA region.

The Dubai FinTech Summit, scheduled for May 6-7, 2024, at Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai, will see an unprecedented gathering of over 8,000 decision-makers, over 300 thought leaders and over 200 exhibitors showcasing cutting-edge technologies.

Visitors can purchase tickets for the Dubai FinTech Summit 2024, with early bird prices ending soon.

Bitlayer the first Layer 2 solution offering Bitcoin-equivalent security and Turing completeness built on BitVM has partnered with Dubai Blockchain Center, at the heals of their participation in Dubai’s Token 2049.

As per the press release, Bitlayer aims to bring secure scalability to the Bitcoin ecosystem, promoting asset diversity and spurring innovation for a faster, safer, and more flexible user experience.

Bitlayer states, “This milestone marks a seminal collaboration between titans of the blockchain industry. As the Bitlayer team heads to Dubai for Token 2049, we’re honored to have partnered with an incredibly key company paving the way in blockchain.”

The partnership between Dubai Blockchain Center and Bitlayer seeks to provide a truly global hub for blockchain companies, focusing on providing blockchain education and training. The Bitlayer and Dubai Blockchain center are welcoming projects.

Recently Stc Bahrain, the Saudi Telecom subsidiary in Bahrain, announced it would be operating nodes on Core Chain Bitcoin Layer 1 blockchain. Stc Bahrain has partnered with Core Chain DAO as part of its Web3 launchpad initiative.

Saudi Telecom Company Bahrain better known as stc Bahrain has partnered with Aleph Zero to explore DePIN ( Decentralized Physical Infrastructure network) use cases.

Aleph Zero has formed an alliance with stc Bahrain, Telecom operator in Bahrain. The collaboration with Aleph Zero is set to bolster stc Bahrain’s Web3 initiatives that will improve the breadth and depth of the experiences that are offered to stc’s customers.

The first step of the collaboration is for stc Bahrain to deploy validator nodes on Aleph Zero. At the same time, Aleph Zero will join stc’s Pearling Path initiative, a Web3 Launchpad Program designed to accelerate Web3 adoption in the Middle East. Pearling Path focuses on integrating blockchain infrastructure to address regional challenges and enhance economic growth.

As per the press release, the partnership will not only broaden stc Bahrain’s infrastructure portfolio, but will also bolster Aleph Zero’s network and adoption—which stc Bahrain recognized for characteristics such as privacy, scalability, security, and speed. Aleph Zero also stood out to stc Group’s subsidiary thanks to the team’s technological prowess and unique approach to tackling on-chain privacy and enterprise-grade scalability challenges.

Saad Odeh, stc Bahrain Chief Wholesale Officer noted, “Aleph Zero brings privacy-enhancing technology and a scalable, decentralized network that resonates with our vision for a seamless digital future. Privacy-enhancing web3 protocols and Telecoms are a perfect match.”
stc Bahrain also highlighted Aleph Zero’s innovative consensus protocol, AlephBFT, and the fact that it is a public network offering robust privacy technology through a blend of Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZK-SNARKs) and Secure Multi-Party Computation (sMPC). The company is confident in Aleph Zero’s ability to deliver a secure, scalable solution, and lay the groundwork for private, verifiable transactions–without compromising sensitive data.

Antoni Zolciak, Aleph Zero Co-founder added,” stc Bahrain stands as a pioneer in the Gulf region, leading the charge in introducing Web3 and blockchain solutions to its extensive customer base. Aleph Zero is thrilled to collaborate with such a prominent player in the telecommunications arena, that shares our dedication to secure, scalable, and privacy-focused blockchain infrastructure. We look forward to seeing how our combined efforts will contribute to advancing a more secure, decentralized DePIN digital ecosystem across the Gulf region and beyond.”

In the past weeks stc Bahrain has signed several partnerships with blockchain entities including stc Bahrain operating nodes on Core Chain Bitcoin Layer 1 blockchain as part of its Web3 launchpad initiative. It also partnered with Lionscraft for blockchain and Web3 services.


UAE based Medad Holding a leading conglomerate of diverse tech startups and Franklin Templeton (Templeton International, Inc.,)  a global investment management organization building blockchain tech solutions, have entered a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to form a new joint venture in the United Arab Emirates to develop a tokenized digital asset from the UAE that aims to combine the yield-bearing component of a money market fund security with the ease of use and portability of a stablecoin.

The new “yieldcoin” construct would offer investors superior use cases for cash and collateral payments and mark an innovative step forward in bringing together the traditional and new blockchain-based financial rails.

“Yieldcoins will combine the best of both worlds,” according to Mohammed Alshaiba Almazrouei, Chief Operating Officer, Medad Holding. “It provides the medium of exchange, unit of account, and ease of use of a stablecoin with a potential for growth by being linked to interest-bearing assets. As such, the yieldcoin project should address a gap that currently exists in the market.”

The yieldcoin project will be housed under a new Web3 entity being set up by Medad Holding. This new entity will further enhance Medad Holding’s reputation for working at the cutting edge of emerging and digital businesses, leveraging the reach and network it has established around the world.  

Infrastructure and servicing will be provided by Franklin Templeton via their BENJI tokenization suite – the same infrastructure that is currently used to administer Franklin Templeton’s U.S. Government OnChain Money Fund (FOBXX) – the only tokenized fund in the world where the official set of transaction records are maintained on public blockchains.

“We are excited to be partnering with Medad Holding in extending the use of the Benji infrastructure,” said Jenny Johnson, President & CEO, Franklin Templeton. “Medad Holding has been at the forefront of digitizing the banking system just as Franklin Templeton has been the foremost innovator in tokenizing real-world assets on public blockchain. We see yieldcoins as an important new offering that will become a mainstay over time in the operation of the global financial market infrastructure.”

Franklin Templeton Digital Assets (FTDA) has been active in the digital asset ecosystem since 2018, building blockchain-based technology solutions, developing a range of investment strategies, and running node validators. FTDA’s dedicated digital assets research team leverages fundamental “tokenomic” analysis, insights from an imbedded data science team, and deep industry connections to help inform product development and investment decisions.

NEOPIN Permissioned DeFi platform based in Abu Dhabi UAE, which launched the first DeFi product for the Klaytn-Finischia ecosystem, has announced a new RWA ( Real World Assets), platform that will position the protocol to become a global leading Real World Asset (RWA) DeFi protocol. The platform will combine the rich liquidity of traditional finance with blockchain technology, creating global marketability with high levels of security and regulatory compliance.

Prior to this UAE based Finschia Foundation, which works to expand public blockchain and Web3 technologies, and NEOPIN, partnered to provide decentralized exchange services.

The key objectives of the new RWA platform include the development of a dedicated RWA platform based on the order book, the expansion of innovative RWA product offerings, and the expansion of the RWA multi-chain strategy.

NEOPIN’s RWA platform is being developed as an all-in-one platform that can meet the diverse needs of institutions, users and the industry. It will provide a more intuitive and simplified solution for institutional participants to engage with RWA technology and markets without the need for a complex review process. It will also be designed with a decentralized order book to make it easy to use for global users familiar with equity or crypto exchanges.

In terms of product offerings, RWA will continue to expand its innovative product suite, with more than five RWA products in the pipeline with institutional partners that are poised to make a significant impact in the DeFi and physical markets. In parallel, we are also working on a strategy to expand the RWA issuance chain, continuing the multi-chain strategy that has underpinned the success of NEOPIN’s DeFi on a dedicated RWA platform.

In March, NEOPIN launched the platform’s first RWA-linked DeFi product and entered the $5.7 billion global RWA market in earnest. With the success of its recently launched RWA derivative products, NEOPIN’s consolidated total value locked (TVL) has exceeded USD 200 million.

“NEOPIN’s RWA platform aims to attract global institutional partners and users and then position itself as an essential infrastructure for institutions,” said Ethan Kim, CEO of NEOPIN. “With our new platform, innovative product suite and institutional acquisition, we will grow into the top tier of global RWA within two years.”

Since 2017, NEOPIN has been building its blockchain expertise and technology by participating as a node validator operator for various global blockchains, including Ethereum, Tron, Cardano, Cosmos, Klaytn, and Finschia. Last year, the company was selected as an innovative company by the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in recognition of its regulatory compliance and expertise, becoming the first Korean blockchain company to receive direct and indirect investment, and is working with the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), a financial special zone in the UAE, to create the world’s first DeFi regulation in a public-private partnership. 

UAE based Humanity International Investments (HII), social impact fund, has created a watchdog index for the crypto and blockchain ecosystem. The index will serve as a barometer for assessing the socio-economic impact of cryptocurrencies and blockchain projects worldwide, with a keen focus on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) impact.

In a push for ethical investment within the crypto sector, HII’s initiative introduces a rigorous ESG framework. The index is designed to evaluate and rate blockchain entities, crypto tokens and crypto funds based on a multifaceted methodology, incorporating market performance, technology robustness, regulatory compliance, and community engagement, alongside a keen ESG analysis.

The HII index will guide investors towards sustainable, responsible, and socially beneficial crypto ventures.

The HII Blockchain Index recognizes the essential role ESG considerations play within the investment landscape. The aim is to encourage investment in projects that align with sustainability goals and have a meaningful impact, particularly for those at the bottom of the economic pyramid.

“By prioritizing investments that align with broader sustainability goals, the Humanity Blockchain Index will direct the crypto industry towards a future where it holds a sustainable and socially responsible modus operandi”, said Mr. Marcus Dukes, President of HII.

The launch of this index demonstrates HII’s unwavering dedication to closing the income gap for the unbanked and ultra-poor, particularly in Africa.

HII is championing a new investment paradigm – one that values humanity’s future as much as immediate financial returns. This initiative is set to catalyze a shift towards more sustainable business practices in the crypto industry and foster an inclusive and ethically robust digital economy.

“Through our pioneering Blockchain Index, we are setting a new standard for responsible investment in the crypto world. By factoring in a token’s environmental impact, societal contribution, and governance quality, the index ensures investors have a clear understanding of which crypto enterprises are contributing positively to society and which may be falling short,” said Dukes.

The HII Blockchain Index will measure the impact of crypto and blockchain companies on individuals at the bottom of the pyramid, with a particular emphasis on the unbanked population. The index will evaluate how these companies are leveraging technology to provide financial services, increase accessibility, and foster economic empowerment for those who have historically been excluded from the traditional banking system. By focusing on key metrics such as accessibility, usability, and the implementation of projects that directly benefit the unbanked, the HII Blockchain Index aims to highlight and support those entities making tangible strides towards financial inclusion.

Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), the leading global financial center in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region, enacts the world’s first Digital Assets Law, a new Law of Security and related amendments to select existing legislation to cater for the consequences of the new digital assets regime and revised security regime. The legislative enactments aim to ensure DIFC Laws keep pace with the rapid developments in international trade and financial markets arising from technological developments, and to provide legal certainty for investors in, and users of, Digital Assets.

Digital Assets Law – DIFC Law No. 2 of 2024

Digital Assets represent a trillion-dollar asset class and the scope for future innovation and market opportunities within it are considerable. Thus far, the primary focus in many jurisdictions has been to regulate and impose enforcement related sanctions on some of the practical applications of this asset class from a regulated financial services perspective. However, the fundamental benefits brought about by blockchain technology, the digital assets that can be created thereby, and their application across a wide spectrum of use cases will grow and become of increasing importance in a much wider context. In this regard, the broader legal questions as to the exact nature of the legal features and consequences of digital assets has very much remained open for debate on a number of key issues. International legal developments and judgments across the common law world have begun to provide some clarity in this regard but have not yet provided a comprehensive legal framework mapping out the full extent of the legal characteristics of a digital asset and how users and investors within this asset class may interact with digital assets and each other.  

Following extensive review of the legal approaches taken to digital assets in multiple jurisdictions, and a period of public consultation in 2023, DIFC is now enacting its own Digital Assets Law. 

Existing DIFC laws such as the Contracts Law, Law of Obligations, Law of Security, Law of Damages and Remedies, Trust Law and Foundations Law have also been updated through DIFC Amendment Law, No. 3 of 2024, to cater to specific issues arising in relation to this asset class. 

Updates to the Law of Obligations also provide for the use of electronic transferable records. Electronic transferable records are functionally equivalent to paper trade documents or instruments such as bills of lading, bills of exchange, promissory notes and warehouse receipts. Recognition of such documents in electronic form facilitates greater efficiencies within cross-border digital trade by increasing the speed and security of transmission of documentation and allowing for the automation of certain transactions through smart contracts.

Similarly, a great deal of innovation has taken place in secured transactions regimes internationally – particularly since the DIFC Law of Security was enacted in 2005. This includes the emergence of businesses and platforms that enable the extension of credit in, and secured or covered by, digital asset collateral arrangements, and an increasing drive to digitise international trade.  

Following consideration of regimes in other jurisdictions and, in particular, UNCITRAL’s Model Law on Secured Transaction, in conjunction with the new Digital Assets Law, DIFC is repealing the 2005 Law of Security, and replacing it with a new Law of Security to significantly amend and enhance DIFC’s securities regime. This will align the regime with international best practice and provide clarity in relation to taking security over digital assets.  In doing so, DIFC is also repealing the Financial Collateral Regulations, amalgamating the financial collateral provisions into a new chapter of the new Law of Security. 

Jacques Visser, Chief Legal Officer at DIFC Authority, said: “DIFC is excited to announce the enactment of its Digital Assets Law. We consider this legislation to be groundbreaking as the first legislative enactment to comprehensively set out the legal characteristics of digital assets as a matter of property law, and to provide for how digital assets may be controlled, transferred and dealt with by interested parties. At the same time, we are also enacting a new Law of Security, replacing the 2005 law. The revised regime is modelled on the UNCITRAL Model of Secured Transactions and significantly enhances DIFC’s securities regime to keep pace with international developments in this field and to ensure DIFC remains at the forefront of best practice.”

The new legislation came into effect on 8 March 2024 and can be accessed via DIFC’s Legislative Database: here.
The new laws reflect the Centre’s commitment to maintaining a transparent and robust legal and regulatory framework aligned with global best practice.
 

U.S. based Web3Firewall founded by Lebanese born Dr. Samer Fayssal has raised $2.5 million pre-seed investment round led by Laser Digital, Nomura’s digital asset subsidiary, which is licensed in Dubai UAE, gumi Cryptos Capital (gCC), and SPEILLLP, a member of Susquehanna International Group.

We3Firewall has developed an intelligence-driven risk and compliance platform specifically to meet the evolving challenges of companies engaged in blockchain technology and digital assets.

The company was founded in 2023 by Dr. Samer Fayssal, who was previously CISO and Head of Security at digital asset custodian BitGo. Fayssal and team recognized that Web3 and blockchain technology companies require a next-generation cybersecurity product rather than the fragmented solutions currently available. The product, Web3Firewall Enterprise, addresses increasingly sophisticated risk and compliance demands in one seamless platform, which is equipped to handle the unique risk profiles of DeFi, NFTs, DAOs, and other emerging Web3 applications, providing a security layer that will be able to keep pace as the tokenized economy develops.

Web3Firewall Enterprise can be easily integrated with and tailored to security infrastructure through APIs, which can detect, protect, and respond to malicious transactions and AML/KYC-related incidents even before they occur. Furthermore, the platform simulates transaction outcomes with artificial intelligence to enhance actionable insights. Additional accuracy and precision are delivered by machine learning to self-correct false negative and false positive results. Web3Firewall Enterprise is currently in a beta testing phase and is due to launch onto the market in Q2 this year.

Dr. Samer Fayssal, CEO of Web3Firewall, commented, “We are grateful to have the support of our investors, who are aligned with our vision to bring intelligence-driven security to blockchain-enabled companies. As a proactive risk and compliance platform, Web3Firewall Enterprise provides actionable insights so that these companies can better protect themselves and stay compliant.”

Olivier Dang, Head of Ventures, Laser Digital, added “Laser Digital is delighted to support this exciting project — The uniquely heightened security and compliance of Web3Firewall’s product, which proactively protects against malicious transactions, will allow institutional engagement in tokenized and digital assets to grow and progress.”

Miko Matsumura; Managing Partner of gumi Cryptos Capital, said, “One of the greatest dissatisfactions with web3 is ensuring strong cybersecurity measures. Web3Firewall has the strongest team and vision for how to strengthen this key area”

Vir Anand, Investor, Susquehanna Private Equity Investments, said, “As the crypto industry matures AML, compliance, detection and prevention become paramount. Samer and his team have developed tools to assist companies in creating custom compliance parameters, which adhere to the regulatory framework in which the company operates, as well as cutting edge, self-learning solutions that promise to provide unparalleled protection against malicious transactions in real-time to ensure a protocol’s integrity.”

As per Invest Qatar report The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), Tasmu Smart Qatar invested $1.65 billion in digital technologies, and expects this number to reach $5.7 billion by 2026.

Qatar’s digital investments across different priority technologies, such as Internet of Things (IoT) sensors, cybersecurity systems integration, hardware & software deploy and support, cloud computing, big data analytics, enterprise resource planning, AR & VR, drones, IT consulting, Blockchain, custom application design, and artificial intelligence (AI), is expected to grow from “$1.65bn” in 2022 to “$5.7bn” in 2026.

Invest Qatar revealed this in its report, ‘Smarter Qatar: Embracing Emerging Technologies and Innovation, Improving Lives and Driving a Sustainable Digital Economy’, which it prepared in collaboration with the MCIT.

The report also stated that Tasmu is leveraging emerging technology to drive the Smarter Qatar Strategy.

As per the report, “Key functionality focus areas and microservices are identified based on alignment with national strategies, scan of global smart city/nation platforms, and relevance to proposed platform role,” the report stated.

The functionality focus areas include IoT, cloud, analytics, and AI, while the potential microservices are IoT sensors, marketplace, generative Al, multi-cloud, operation command centre, chatbots, predictive analytics, payment gateway, voice interface, and hybrid-cloud, among many others.

According to the report, the integration of emerging technologies in a smart country landscape leads to transformative changes, enhancing sustainability and the quality of life of citizens, ensuring seamless connectivity, and data-driven decision-making.

Additionally, the integration of IoT with AI-powered traffic management helps analyze real time traffic data and coordinates signals leading to a decrease in congestion, enhanced transit efficiency, and lowered greenhouse gas emissions. On data analytics, the report stated that gathering big data from people, infrastructure, and vehicles empowers city planners to optimize buildings, enhance energy efficiency.

Qatar recently launched its digital asset lab which includes blockchain technology at its core, with companies joining in from around the globe.

BACS ( Blockchain Arbitration and Commerce Society) has launched its operations in the Middle East with the opening of an office in Dubai, at Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). As per the press release, Dubai has become a vibrant ecosystem for blockchain companies, crypto assets, and artificial intelligence, offering significant opportunities for innovation, growth, and global expansion.

As Ignacio Ferrer-Bonsoms, President of BACS, points out, “Dubai is a strategic location for us. As a Digital Chamber of Commerce, we must be here. We want to bring our associates to Dubai and, conversely, we want to accompany Middle Eastern technology companies to the rest of the world. BACS’s presence within the DIFC reinforces its reputation as a world-class financial centre that attracts cutting-edge organizations.

BACS encompasses a global network with deep industry knowledge and a commitment to responsible innovation.

BACS aims to further elevate Dubai’s profile as a destination for blockchain projects seeking a reputable and well-regulated environment. The arbitration and dispute resolution focus, carried out by the association not by BACS Dubai, will strengthen the DIFC’s legal framework, especially for complex cases involving emerging technologies.

Peter Hulks, CBDO of BACS Dubai, believes that “Dubai is making significant contributions to the world. Dubai is an Innovation Hub. Dubai is actively fostering a culture of innovation and experimentation. They invest in blockchain, AI, and other cutting-edge technologies, which in turn attracts global talent, entrepreneurs, and forward-thinking businesses. This pushes the boundaries of what’s possible and shapes how we think about the future economy.”

He also highlights its strategic location. “Dubai is a bridge between worlds. Located at the crossroads of East and West, Dubai is uniquely positioned as a connector. It facilitates trade, fosters international collaboration, and promotes cultural exchange. This connectivity plays a critical role in breaking down barriers and driving global progress. Overall, Dubai is contributing a fresh perspective, a spirit of innovation, and a commitment to a long-term vision, something increasingly lacking in countries once seen as leaders in these areas. There are many reasons why I call Dubai home, my answer barely scratches the surface.”

Levan Bodzashvili, COO of BACS Dubai, considers Dubai to be a model of tolerance. “Dubai’s diverse, multicultural society is a true melting pot. They’ve created an environment where people from all walks of life can work and live together. This promotes understanding and cooperation in an increasingly interconnected world, serving as an encouraging example.”

He also highlights Dubai’s visionary leadership. “Dubai’s leadership is clear. Their vision is grand and transformative. They’re not afraid to take risks and invest boldly in ambitious projects, often related to sustainability and technology. This drive pushes the limits and inspires others to strive for ambitious goals that can benefit all of humanity.”

The future of BACS is focused on contributing to a healthy and mature blockchain ecosystem. For BACS, reliability and accessibility are key: our arbitration services offer a clear path for dispute resolution, essential as this industry grows. 

Our goal is to simplify things, helping businesses understand and confidently explore blockchain’s potential. BACS is actively working on expanding its network to key markets, forging new alliances, and learning. BACS will be a practical force for good, advocating for responsible adoption and ethical practices within the blockchain space.

Some of the key advantages BACS offers to companies working with new technologies include:

Risk Mitigation: New technology, especially in the blockchain space, carries inherent risks. We help companies understand those risks, both legal and technical, and implement strategies to mitigate them. This can save them from costly mistakes and protect their reputation.

Dispute Resolution: When conflicts arise (and they inevitably will), BACS offers a specialized arbitration platform. This provides a faster, more cost-effective, and often more private alternative to traditional litigation, keeping projects on track and avoiding public disputes.

Knowledge & Expertise: The BACS team has deep experience in blockchain, crypto assets, and AI. Companies venturing into these areas benefit from our insights, practical guidance, and connections to a global network of experts.

Trust Factor: Working with BACS adds legitimacy to a project. It shows a commitment to transparency, fair play, and responsible innovation. This can be crucial for attracting investors, partners, and building a positive reputation in the industry.


BACS is like the steady hand on the wheel. Companies can focus on innovation, knowing that BACS has their back in managing the challenges that come with using cutting-edge technologies.

The announcement comes as more Blockchain, AI and Web3 startups gravitate towards DIFC.