Genesis Technologies joins QFC digital assets Lab for Blockchain use cases

Genesis Technologies joins QFC digital assets Lab for Blockchain use cases

Henk Jan Hoogendoorn has confirmed that Qatar Genesis Technologies, a Qatar University tech spinoff is working with Qatar Financial Center Authority on possible use cases in their digital assets labs.

Lebanese-Canadian national Mazen El Masri, Co-Founder and CEO of Genesis Technologies, the tech company which developed Maxya, is working with QFC digital assets labs on several blockchain use cases.

As per the post the possible use case could include tokenization, security tokes and fractional ownership.

On Sunday October 29th, Qatar announced one of the biggest digital assets initiatives in the country and the GCC region, the Qatar Innovation Dome for digital assets. As per the live event keynotes, the digital assets lab will develop tokenization platforms and ecosystems for everything that has value whether tangible assets or intangible assets including real estate assets, securities, Sukuk, bonds and others in the future utilizing DLT ( distributed ledger technologies), blockchain, and smart contracts.

Qatar Financial Centre Authority (QFCA) signed MOUs with Blockchain solution provider R3 and Blockchain SettleMint platform. The agreement with Settlemint will also as with R3 work on Blockchain and digital asset initiatives in the financial sector in the digital assets lab.

GCEX crypto broker becomes fifth licensed VASP in Dubai UAE

GCEX crypto broker becomes fifth licensed VASP in Dubai UAE

GC Exchange part of the GCEX Group, has been granted an Operational VASP Licence for VA Broker Dealer services from Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA)

GCEX, which opened its Dubai office in July 2022 and received its MVP (Minimal Viable Product) Preparatory Licence from VARA in February 2023, can now start market operations as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) in the Emirate of Dubai, enabling brokers, hedge funds, family offices and professional traders to access its deep liquidity in digital assets and range of technology solutions.

GCEX facilitates institutional access to digital assets through its proprietary XplorDigital trading solutions, which comprises of a technology-agnostic platform covering regulation, regulated custody, the safety of funds, tier 1 liquidity and technology (both back-end and front-end). GCEX only partners with regulated institutional digital custody and staking providers and always segregates client funds.

Mehtap Önder, Managing Director, GCEX in Dubai, commented in a press release, “VARA is leading the way in the global digital asset industry, and we are extremely proud to be one of the first firms to receive a VASP Operating Licence to provide Virtual Asset Broker-Dealer services and the first firm to gain approval to operate with a client money account, highlighting our focus on client protection.Being a regulated entity in the region is important to us – it’s the ideal way to demonstrate our commitment to adhering to international standards and implementing robust processes, with transparency and investor protection at the core of our offering. This is a major milestone for our business and is critical to GCEX’s growth strategy, enabling us to have a stronger presence in the region.”

GCEX Group enables institutional clients to access deep liquidity in FX and CFDs on digital assets, as well as digital assets spot trading and conversion and a broad range of trading solutions. Headquartered in London, with multiple offices across the globe, GCEX is regulated by the UK’s FCA and registered with the Danish FSA. True Global Ventures are investors in GCEX.

To date five crypto exchanges, Fuze, BackPack, Toko, Laser Digital, and GCEX have received full licences to operate in UAE under the VARA regime, with Crypto.com still awaiting final sign offs before it receives its full VASP license. The more well global names such as Binance, ByBit, OKX have yet to receive theirs, while BitOasis remains in frozen status.

IOTA to launch its regulated DLT Foundation in Abu Dhabi UAE

IOTA to launch its regulated DLT Foundation in Abu Dhabi UAE

IOTA an open-source distributed ledger and cryptocurrency designed for the Internet of things announced that it will be establishing its IOTA regulated foundation for digital infrastructure in Abu Dhabi UAE. This is as per their blog is a move that underlines their commitment to the UAE and their growth plans globally. Prior to this IOTA had announced in September it would launch its headquarters in UAE.

As per the blog post, the purpose of this entity is to become one of the primary organizations to foster the growth, adoption, and global expansion of IOTA. The post states, “As we open up a new chapter with IOTA, we need to match technology with the right support to establish IOTA as a global ecosystem. We can only do this by operating out of the right environment. We are convinced that the UAE will offer IOTA the best environment to realize its global ambitions.”

It adds,” We want IOTA to be a public goods infrastructure that will power our digital society and economy. With the new foundation in Abu Dhabi, we are confident that we will achieve this vision of the future.”

This announcement comes just after ADGM (Abu Dhabi Global Market) regulatory authority (FSRA) announced its new DLT Foundation regulatory framework. So IOTA could be the first entity to launch under this new regulatory framework.

According to Dominik Schiener, Chairman of the IOTA Foundation: ”From the very beginning, we have experienced a very warm welcome and unwavering support from leaders, regulators, and businesses in Abu Dhabi. I am simply amazed at how the country operates and how it is being led by visionary and open-minded leaders. This “can-do” mentality is the perfect environment for us to take IOTA to the next level. We are excited to play a role in helping to establish the UAE as a hub for technology innovations.”

The newly established foundation will operate under the guidance of a dedicated board of directors. One of its primary objectives will be to provide essential funding and support to the rapidly growing IOTA ecosystem. This commitment aligns with our mission to foster innovation and development within the broader DLT space.

IOTA aims to work closely with leading institutions out of the UAE, and building a thriving DLT ecosystem in the UAE and beyond.  

This announcement comes as the IOTA Foundation was chosen as a key participant in the UAE’s official startup delegation at CEATEC in Japan.

“We are thrilled to announce that the IOTA Foundation has been chosen as a key participant in the UAE’s official startup delegation at the upcoming CEATEC conference, scheduled from October 17th to 20th and held at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan. This recognition is an immense honor and a testament to IOTA’s pivotal role in pioneering Web3 and Web2 innovations.”

In May 2023, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani AlZeyoudi and the Founder of Iota, Dominik Schiener, met announcing that the IoTa Blockchain platform has now been ushered into the UAE’s digital ecosystem.

UAE home grown Fuze Finance receives license from Dubai virtual asset regulator

UAE home grown Fuze Finance receives license from Dubai virtual asset regulator

UAE based Fuze Finance under the licensed name Morpheus Software Technology (FUZE) FZE has just received a full VASP license from Dubai’s Virtual asset regulatory Authority. Fuze offers embedded digital asset capabilities for financial institutions as a digital asset infrastructure provider for the Middle East.

VARA’s license will allow Fuze Finance to offer broker dealer services, allowing them to serve institutional investors, retail and qualified investors. Through this licence, the business will be able to serve customers through two core service lines: firstly, via digital assets as a service (DAAS) enabling banks, fintechs and enterprises to integrate B2B2C digital asset products natively into their channels and secondly, through a regulated Over-The-Counter (OTC) service providing investors with a technology-first option for executing institutional-level digital asset trading with ease and efficiency.

With a regional digital asset market worth $566bn, and growing at 48% YoY, Fuze co-founder and CEO, Mohammed Ali Yusuf believes the Middle East is the perfect home to establish a digital assets infrastructure business.

Ali Yufu on receiving the license noted, “We thank VARA for assessing and approving our licence. VARA’s comprehensive and consultative process demonstrates the robust framework at the heart of this booming industry. Across the UAE, digital assets businesses are being welcomed to a thriving ecosystem with regulation that matches rapid innovation and adoption. Businesses can now have full confidence in the regulated infrastructure that Fuze provides, as we support the world’s fastest-growing digital assets hub.”

In September 2023 UAE headquartered Fuze Finance, raised a seed round of $14mn, the largest Seed investment in a digital assets startup in the history of the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA). The investment was led by Abu Dhabi-based Further Ventures, along with participation by US-based Liberty City Ventures.

Fuze wanted to benefit from the strategic capital and network of these investors, acting as a catalyst for the business as it builds the digital asset infrastructure that will drive the future of finance.  A first-of-its-kind infrastructure provider in MENA, Fuze enables any bank, fintech or traditional enterprise to easily offer regulated digital assets products to their customers through their native apps.

Fuze was founded by an expert team of fintech, traditional finance (TradFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi) leaders, with its co-founders holding extensive knowledge from experience in global hypergrowth businesses.

CEO, Mohammed Ali Yusuf (Mo Ali Yusuf) has held prominent roles at Checkout.com and Visa; Arpit Mehta (COO) was previously in the leadership team at fintech leaders like Simpl and Clear; Srijan Shetty (CTO) built algorithmic trading systems at Goldman Sachs and worked at tech leader Microsoft.

Yusuf at the time of raise stated, “We are excited to build the future of regulated financial infrastructure and digital assets out of the UAE. Regulations have played a pivotal role in propelling the UAE into a central position within the global Digital Assets industry. To receive the backing of Abu Dhabi-headquartered Further Ventures combined with the deep expertise of US-based Liberty City Ventures, confirms the relevancy and potential of Fuze’s mission to rapidly expand our cutting-edge infrastructure across the region.”

Article updated on November 20th 2023

Marathon Digital mines 18 Bitcoins from UAE with expected 7 exahashes online by end of 2023

Marathon Digital mines 18 Bitcoins from UAE with expected 7 exahashes online by end of 2023

Marathon Digital Holding, a crypto mining entity has mined 18 Bitcoin out of the 1,202 Bitcoin produced in October 2023 from its UAE joint venture with 2.3 exahashes online in Abu Dhabi with 7 exahashes to be online by end of 2023. The figures were published in its unaudited Bitcoin BTC production and miner installation updates for October 2023.

Fried Thiel, Marathon Digital’s Chairman and CEO  stated in their press release, “  “In October, we increased our energized hash rate 1% to 19.2 exahashes as the facility in Garden City, Texas, where we have 4.1 exahashes of miners installed, began to come online. Once this facility is fully operational later this month, we will have surpassed our 23 exahash target and solidified Marathon as the largest publicly traded Bitcoin miner in North America.”

In terms of the operation in UAE, Thiel added, “By increasing our hash rate and continuing to improve our operations at the facility in McCamey, Texas and elsewhere, we earned 4.0% of the total Bitcoin network’s available miner rewards and produced 1,202 bitcoin in October. This total includes 18 bitcoin from our 20% share of the JV in Abu Dhabi. We now have 2.3 exahashes online in Abu Dhabi as our second, larger facility in Masdar City has begun powering up. We continue to expect the full 7.0 exahashes in the UAE to be online by year-end.

“We have also been exploring new methods of mining that we believe may allow us to further diversify our operations, reduce our energy costs, and increase our sustainable energy mix. We recently announced a pilot project in Utah that is exclusively powered by landfill methane gas. Naturally produced methane is often stranded, and Bitcoin miners like Marathon are uniquely positioned to help capture and convert this environmentally harmful gas into clean, renewable energy. We look forward to sharing more of the many innovative mining projects that we are exploring in the months ahead.”

Furthermore in November 8th Marathon Digital Holdings reported results for the third quarter 2023 including its operational results for the quarter ended September 30th 2023, Thiel made a statement showcasing how their international expansion in UAE has opened up new international opportunities such as Paraguay. He noted, “We made significant progress on our 2023 strategic  priorities in the  third quarter. First, we grew our energized hash rate 8% quarter-over-quarter to  19.1 exahashes. In addition, our new facility in Garden City started energizing last week and is  expected to be fully operational later this month. Second, we experienced significantly higher uptime  as  optimization  efforts  helped  increase  our  U.S. average operational hash  rate 18%  from last  quarter to  14.2 exahashes.  Third, we energized our first joint venture and our first international location in  the UAE. This initial success has helped open new opportunities, and we  recently entered into a new joint venture in Paraguay powered by hydroelectricity.

The Company recorded net income of $64.1 million, or $0.35 per diluted share, during the three months ended  September 30, 2023, compared  to a net loss  of $72.5 million, or $0.62 loss per share, in the same period last year.

Marathon Digital officially inaugurated it 200 MW Bitcoin mining facility at Masdar City in Abu Dhabi UAE, under the joint venture Two Zero. In January 27th 2022, Marathon digital Holdings, 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, (Abu Dhabi Global Markets) based company.

Taurus opens UAE based Middle East office as more financial and non-financial entities sign up for digital asset and custodial services

Taurus opens UAE based Middle East office as more financial and non-financial entities sign up for digital asset and custodial services

Taurus SA, a FINMA-regulated Swiss institutional-grade digital asset infrastructure provider, has expanded its operations into the Middle East to serve its growing client base in the region. Taurus will service the GCC and MENA region, including KSA, Qatar and even Turkey through its Dubai UAE office.

Founded in 2018Taurus SA, a Swiss company provides enterprise-grade digital asset infrastructure to issue, custody and trade any digital assets: cryptocurrencies, tokenized assets, NFTs and digital currencies.

Managing Director, Bashir Kazour, leads Taurus’ new UAE office based in the DIFC in Dubai. M. Kazour brings more than 20 years of retail, capital markets and technology experience gained at Royal Bank of Canada, Standard Chartered and FIS, a leading banking and payment technology provider. Over the last decade, he collaborated closely with a diverse client base ranging from sovereign wealth funds and central banks to brokers and family offices.

“I am excited to lead Taurus’ efforts and build a winning franchise in the Middle East, a region known for its rapid adoption of blockchain technology and digital assets,” said Kazour. “Taurus is well-known for its unique custody and tokenization capabilities serving banking clients and large enterprises, which aligns perfectly with the needs of the region. We’ve already started interacting closely with regulators, central banks and clients and I’m looking forward to delivering cutting-edge and compliant solutions to the market.”

Speaking to LaraontheBlock on whether Taurus requires regulation by VARA, Bashir Kazour, Managing Director at Taurus SA explained, “Taurus does not need a regularity license in the UAE as we solely focus on providing the digital asset infrastructure to our clients in the region. To make it simple, Taurus is a technology provider, equipping banks and corporates, with a platform to manage any digital asset. The financial services activity is regulated by the Swiss FINMA and is not promoted outside of Switzerland.”

Taurus opened an office in DIFC Dubai because the company has already signed up some large financial institutions according to Kazour. He adds, “We are also in late stage discussions with several other financial and non-financial institutions in the Middle East region. The region is known for its rapid adoption of blockchain technology and digital assets driven by the regulatory clarity already provided through VARA, ADGM, RAK DAO initiatives, fostering innovation.”

As such Kazour reaffirms that the opening of the office in the UAE is to support this growing demand in the region for both custodial and tokenization solutions.

The office according to Kazour will serve the full Middle East region, including Qatar, KSA but also Turkey. He adds, “ We also have plans to expand to other countries as well.”

Taurus has already consolidated its European leadership position as the preferred digital asset infrastructure provider for banks and corporates, building on its Swiss market leadership with more than 60% market share. Among others, Taurus has recently announced a partnership with Deutsche Bank as well as CACEIS, one of the largest global custodians. Taurus also closed its $65 million Series B funding round last February with strategic investors including Arab Bank Switzerland, Credit Suisse, and Pictet.

Hex Trust digital asset custodian receives VARA full license

Hex Trust digital asset custodian receives VARA full license

Hex Trust, a digital asset custodian has announced that it has received a full Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license from the Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) in Dubai.

This follows the issuance of its MVP operational license in February 2023, which marks the final step in VARA’s licensing process, allowing Hex Trust to offer Virtual Assets Custodial Services to institutional clients and sophisticated investors in Dubai.

Hex Trust’s Dubai office was established in June 2022, and is led by Regional MENA Director, Filippo Buzzi.  “It is exciting for us to become one of the first virtual asset companies to receive this operating license in Dubai,” said Filippo Buzzi, Hex Trust’s Regional Director MENA. “Hex Trust is fully committed to expanding into the Middle East and sees enormous potential for digital asset growth given the progressive regulations, welcoming governments, and thriving crypto ecosystem in the region.”

“Hex Trust’s commitment to compliance and regulation has always been a priority. This focus has allowed us to be granted a full operating license in Dubai – one of the few companies to obtain this,” said Alessio Quaglini, Co-Founder and CEO of Hex Trust. “There is so much potential in the Emirate of Dubai. We’re excited to continue to scale our business in the region and make a positive contribution to the virtual asset ecosystem.”

The completion of VARA’s licensing process demonstrates Hex Trust’s commitment to provide a comprehensive, secure and compliant trading environment for digital asset investors in Dubai, and its dedication to help build the virtual asset ecosystem in the MENA region, which is fast becoming one of the world’s leading virtual asset hubs.

In July, Hex Trust received regulatory approval in France to provide digital asset custody services, introduced innovative AI-driven investment tools, and actively participated in global industry events. Hex Trust’s dedication to delivering 24/7 regulated digital asset support to its 200+ global institutional clients remains unwavering as the industry recovers from the bear market. Its resilient approach is a positive signal of confidence and underscores its commitment to building secure blockchain infrastructure and expanding its global reach as a fully-licensed digital asset custodian.

Komainu was the first to receive a digital assets custodial license by VARA.

Swiss digital asset custodian and manager enters UAE with acquisition of Securrency Capital

Swiss digital asset custodian and manager enters UAE with acquisition of Securrency Capital

Swiss based Copper, an institutional digital asset infrastructure provider focusing on custody and collateral management, has acquired  Abu Dhabi based Securrency Capital Limited, a full-service, regulated blockchain-enabled brokerage firm offering digital securities trading based in the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), making its entry into the UAE market.

This comes just after The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation, an American post-trade financial services company providing clearing and settlement services to the financial markets known as DTCC, signed a definitive agreement to acquire Abu Dhabi based Securrency Inc. (“Securrency”), a leading developer of institutional-grade, digital asset infrastructure invested in by Mubadala sovereign Fund.

The two entities Securrency and Securrency Capital have been sold to other institutions just months apart. Securrency Capital Limited is a full-service regulated institutional brokerage firm that offers both traditional and digital financial services. Its mission is to deliver asset tokenization benefits to retail and institutional clients by providing access to multiple digital products and asset classes through a single, easily accessible marketplace

While Securrency is an institutional-grade digital asset infrastructure provider that offers  solutions to market participants to facilitate the trading, settlement and servicing of digital securities and assets.

Securrency Capital’s platform is powered by Securrency, allowing it to provide investors with access to global securities, delivering 24/7 trading with near-real time settlement. In addition, the tokenisation of traditional securities enables increased investor access and simpler, more efficient value chain management through automation.

Operating out of ADGM and supervised by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA), Securrency Capital Limited will be renamed Copper Securities Limited and will remain headquartered in the ADGM.

Dmitry Tokarev, CEO and Founder of Copper, said: “Through this acquisition, Copper is able to grow its role as a global digital asset infrastructure provider and establish a stronger footprint in the United Arab Emirates. This is just the beginning of our expansion into the Middle East.”

John Hensel, Co-founder & COO of Securrency, Inc, said: “I am thrilled to announce Securrency Capital’s acquisition by Copper. We look forward to working with Dmitry and team as they serve the rapidly growing Abu Dhabi Global Market.”

Broadhaven Capital Partners acted as an adviser to Copper on the deal.

African Onafriq payments to offer digital asset payments to GCC using Ripple

African Onafriq payments to offer digital asset payments to GCC using Ripple

Ripple Blockchain and crypto solutions provider has partnered with Onafriq, fintech payments entity, previously known as MFS Arica to offer digital asset enabled cross border payments in Africa, GCC ( Gulf Cooperation Council) countries as well as UK and Australia.

Onafriq utilizing Ripple payments, will open three new payment corridors between Africa and the rest of the world. In GCC Onafriq will be working with Blockchain enabled Pyyple fintech payments entity.

Antti Arponen, CEO at Pyypl, said: “The success of the GCC in drawing in people from all over the world to live and work here has made it a hub for remittance payments. So we are really pleased that our ever-increasing number of customers seeking to send money to Africa will greatly benefit from our new connection with Onafriq, which will allow them to send remittances quickly and cost-effectively to the continent. ”

The partnership is bringing faster, more efficient, and cost-effective international money transfers to Africa, and is set to accelerate financial inclusion across the continent.

“For a number of years, Ripple has supported crypto-enabled, cross-border payments to individuals and businesses, and we are particularly excited to expand the reach of our solution into Africa thanks to our Onfriq partnership,” said Aaron Sears, SVP, Global Customer Success at Ripple. “Connecting our partners PayAngel, Pyppl and Zazi Transfer with Onafriq over Ripple Payments will bring the benefits of faster and more cost-effective cross-border payments to individuals seeking to send money into Africa from around the globe.”

Onafriq has the largest mobile money movement footprint across Africa at a time when mobile money is a significant driver of financial inclusion and has revolutionized access to financial services across the continent. The fintech’s payment hub connects over 500 million mobile wallets across 40 African countries, and operates across more than 1300 payment corridors on the continent, underpinning regional payment interoperability and seamless cross-border payments.

The announcement is being made as Dare Okoudjou, Founder & CEO of Onafriq, is set to appear at Swell Global 2023, the seventh edition of Ripple’s annual customer conference, which this year takes place in Dubai.

Dare Okoudjou, Founder & CEO at Onafriq, said: “Our mission is to make borders matter less when it comes to payment within, to, and from Africa. We are advancing this mission through our partnership with Ripple, which is already enabling new types of connections with fintechs such as PayAngel, Pyppl and Zazi Transfer. These connections are set to enable fast, secure and low-cost remittances at scale between Africa and the rest of the world, and represent a bold first step for our crypto strategy to leverage blockchain technologies to amplify our impact on people and businesses on the continent.”

Standard Chartered and SBI to launch $100 million digital asset venture company in UAE

Standard Chartered and SBI to launch $100 million digital asset venture company in UAE

Standard Chartered’s , venture arm SC Ventures, an innovation and fintech investment arm has 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.

The Digital Asset Joint Venture plans to make investments ranging from seed to Series C funding with a focus on investing globally.

Alex Manson, CEO, SC Ventures stated in the press release, “The region is fast becoming a hub for fintechs in the digital asset space due to its strengthening infrastructure and talent. The Digital Asset Joint Venture will be an important vehicle to explore the emerging digital asset ecosystem opportunities globally. The Joint Venture will leverage SC Ventures’ experience in digital assets through our ventures such as Zodia Custody and Zodia Markets, and through our investments in FinTech like Ripple and Metaco.”

In May 2023, Standard Chartered signed an MOU with the Dubai International Financial Centre to collaborate in the digital asset space, including digital asset custody. That same month, SC Ventures exited its stake in Metaco SA, a Swiss-based tech firm offering critical software infrastructure that enables institutions to issue, secure, manage and trade digital assets. U.S. crypto firm Ripple acquired Metaco for US$250 million in its first major acquisition. Ripple is a SC Ventures portfolio company.

“Our Digital Asset Joint Venture plans to make strategic and minority investments in areas such as market infrastructure, risk management and compliance tools, DeFi, tokenization, consumer payments, and the Metaverse. This is one of several strategic initiatives and we will continue to invest and expand our footprint in the region as well as across the digital assets ecosystem,” Manson added.

“We are thrilled to announce our partnership to establish a Digital Asset Joint Venture in UAE together with SC Ventures and bring to bear the collective capabilities of both our organisations in the digital asset space,” said Yoshitaka Kitao, SBI Holdings, Inc. Representative Director, Chairman, President & CEO. “This initiative further solidifies the strategic relationship between SBI Holdings and SC Ventures following our investment forays into SC Ventures’ portfolio companies including Solv, Zodia Custody and myZoi.”

“We congratulate SC Ventures and SBI Holdings on their drive to help shape the future of finance as they forge ahead with their first Digital Asset Joint Venture in Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). In a world where the conversation around digital assets has rapidly evolved from ‘why’ to an eagerly anticipated ‘when,’ DIFC stands at the forefront of regulation, having meticulously tailored its ecosystem to foster an environment that nurtures investment, fuels exponential growth, and drives innovation,” said Salmaan Jaffery, Chief Business Development Officer, DIFC.