BitOasis receives MVP Operational License from Dubai Virtual asset regulator

BitOasis receives MVP Operational License from Dubai Virtual asset regulator

As per Dubai VARA website, BitOasis, the crypto broker exchange has moved one step forward in its licensing process. It has become the first among VARA’s crypto broker dealers to receive MVP (Minimum Viable Product). operational license one step before the FMP ( Full Minimum Product) Operational License.  

CoinMENA, Scallops, and MidChains are still in the first stage as MVP provisional while GCEX has received an MVP preparatory license one step before MVP operational license.

BitOasis applied for VARA licensing in March 2022. At the time BitOasis had carried out crypto trades worth $4 billion. Ola Doudin Co-Founder and CEO of BitOasis has stated at the time, “  “We will continue to strive to offer our customers the most customized platform for their local needs in accordance with regulations that will best protect them both now and as the industry evolves.”

In April of 2021, BitOasis announced that it had been granted a a Financial Services Permission (FSP) from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) in the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), but is still awaiting additional launch approvals as well.

BitOasis has raised a total of $30 million in funding from investors such as Alameda Research, Digital Currency Group, Global Founders Capital, Jump Capital, NXMH, Pantera Capital, Wamda Capital and others.

In October 2022 UAE based crypto exchange BitOasis, and MasterCard launched crypto card programs across the MENA region to facilitate day to day usage of cryptocurrencies at points of sale and ecommerce websites.

On Monday May 1st, Bitoasis in its official announcement and VARA made the following statements,

 Henson Orser, Chief Executive Office, VARA stated “We are pleased to welcome BitOasis to the MVP Programme phase. The VARA ecosystem aims to strike a balance between value creation, risk mitigation and enhanced investment opportunities with consumer protection at its core. BitOasis has demonstrated a strong commitment to operating with a firm bias for regulation throughout the licensing process. One of VARA’s founding principles is creating an equal opportunity regime for responsible VASPs and being able to onboard credible home-grown companies, like BitOasis, in addition to leading global platforms, allowing us to bring the shared learnings of our licensees to build the foundation for our global future economy.”

Ola Doudin, co-founder and CEO of BitOasis added, “We are extremely proud to receive VARA’s MVP Operational License. Becoming the first virtual asset trading platform in the MVP programme to attain an operating license is an important milestone for us and the Emirate of Dubai.”

 Samir Satchu, Senior Vice-President of Public Policy & Expansion at BitOasis noted, “Our commitment and ambition at BitOasis is to serve the GCC and MENA region through a network of regulated platforms and on the ground infrastructure. VARA’s MVP Operational License, as well as our in-principle approval in Bahrain, are important building blocks for that strategy. “

BitOasis is following in the footsteps of HexTrust crypto custodian who also received MVP operational license earlier this year.

VARA and UAE’s Security Commodities Authority both announced the commencement of licensing of already existing and new crypto entities. 

Article was updated on May 1st 2023 with quotes from VARA and BitOasis

The second biggest global crypto exchange Coinbase intends to set up regulated entity in UAE

The second biggest global crypto exchange Coinbase intends to set up regulated entity in UAE

According to a recent blog post published by CoinBase the second biggest global crypto currency exchange, the company revealed that is in talks with UAE’s regulator in Abu Dhabi, FSRA ( Financial Service Regulatory Authority)  part of ADGM (Abu Dhabi Global Market) to expand its regulated operations to the UAE.

The expansion is part of its global scale to go broad and deep. As part of its strategy, Coinbase will establish regulated entities and local operations in high-bar regulatory jurisdictions abroad to focus on international growth.

As per the blog post, “Coinbase is focused on international growth and is working with several high-bar international regulators to establish regulated entities abroad that safely facilitate trading solutions and provide products the crypto community demands. Coinbase will continue to launch foundational products that are a gateway to Web3 and crypto across the globe while launching localized infrastructure and public facing products with a full suite of services.”

The post adds, “We have accelerated our UAE plans with Abu Dhabi Global market regulator. We are in discussion with the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) in Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) regarding a potential license for a regulated exchange. ADGM is a renowned international financial services center. ADGM is known for having a well-regarded, comprehensive regulatory framework and is committed to operating a fair and efficient regulatory environment for global market participants. ADGM has developed and supported the regulation and trading of cryptocurrencies and Coinbase intends to help further their vision. “

This comes as Binance seeks to receive a regulated license from both ADGM and Dubai’s Virtual asset regulator. While others such as Kraken has closed its operations in UAE. 

USA based Blockchain enterprise entity and UAE Blockchain Suvik tech to bring Web3 technologies to UAE

USA based Blockchain enterprise entity and UAE Blockchain Suvik tech to bring Web3 technologies to UAE

Blockedge Technologies Inc., an enterprise blockchain technology platform, and UAE based Suvik Technologies FZE, a public blockchain technology company, have signed an MOU ( Memorandum of Understanding) to form a joint venture out of Dubai UAE. The join venture will create tools that empower organization to migrate to Web3 technologies.

Blockedge brings its infrastructure automation platform, expertise to develop decentralized applications and interoperable blockchain solutions. At the same time, Suvik group brings its proprietary trading system for crypto assets and Plugin – a Decentralized Oracle Platform built on XDC Network.

“Web3 is all about building system-backed trust to facilitate trusted peer-to-peer transactions,” said Srinivas Mahankali, Chief Business Officer of Blockedge Technologies Inc. “To accelerate the adoption of Web3 technologies globally, we have come together to leverage each other’s strengths to create the required infrastructure layer to encourage and empower over 1000 organizations in the next three years,” he added.

Vinod Khurana, Co-Founder of Plugin Decentralized Oracle on XDC Network and CEO of Suvik Group added, “The creation of the joint venture between Blockedge and Suvik has come at the right time and place and has the potential to add immense value to the blockchain ecosystem. With this venture, we aim to launch decentralized applications across industries, with an initial focus on Agriculture, Healthcare, Supply chain, and E-commerce”.

The partnership will be converted into a 55:45 joint venture based in Dubai, specifically focusing on the Middle East, Asia Pacific, and North America.

UAE based Venom Blockchain to launch testnet at end of April 2023

UAE based Venom Blockchain to launch testnet at end of April 2023

UAE based Venom Blockchain announced that its testnet would be going live by the end of April 2023. Venom was the first blockchain foundation to be granted a license to operate in Abu Dhabi’s ADGM (Abu Dhabi Global Market).

The testnet is designed to suit both ecosystem users and developers and allows developers to test and debug dApps and blockchain protocols, while providing users with an immersive experience of these applications. As per the news, the Venom team believes that the testnet will encourage innovation and community building within its ecosystem, which is vital for growth and sustainability.

To engage with the Venom testnet, users will need to carry out two simple steps before being able to explore a variety of dApps built on Venom. Simply install the Venom wallet as a Google chrome browser extension or through either the app or Google play store. Secondly, users can jumpstart their journey of testing the Venom ecosystem by claiming testnet VENOM tokens.

The Venom testnet, will feature a diverse array of dApps. Some of these will be native to the Venom ecosystem, such as Venom Scan, while others have been developed by external projects and partners

For developers, Venom is offering the opportunity to try their hand at building on the asynchronous Venom blockchain which boasts ultra-fast speed at 100k TPS, and a dynamic Sharding feature that enhances scalability and network reliability. To kick things off, Venom has curated a repository of developer documentation to equip developers with the necessary tools and knowledge to start building.

Prior to this, 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.

The investment came after Venom Ventures Fund announced it was allocating $1 billion to invest in Web3, blockchain and cryptocurrency projects and services. This is the first $1 billion fund for Web3 and Blockchain to originate from the MENA region. Prior to this UAE Cypher Capital had announced its allocation of $200 million for Blockchain, Web3 and Crypto at the end of 2022 and Shurooq Partners had allocated $150 million for the same.

Finally Venom Foundation, announced it was cooperating with DAO Maker, a prominent blockchain growth solutions provider recognized for their Launchpad, to incubate innovative Web3 firms with an emphasis on providing real-world use cases.

Decentralized Autonomous Organizations will soon have a home in UAE ADGM

Decentralized Autonomous Organizations will soon have a home in UAE ADGM

UAE Abu Dhabi Global Market’s registration authority is seeking to develop regulations for DLT ( Distributed Ledger Technology) decentralized autonomous organizations and has started with the issuance of a consultation paper seeking replies before May 12th 2023.

For the proposed Distributed Ledger Technology Foundations Regulations 2023, ADGM is seeking public feedback and comments on the proposed new legislative framework for foundations that facilitate Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) and token issuance (DLT Foundations).

As per the announcement, the Consultation Paper is of interest to any persons operating or planning DLT projects, persons engaging in digital asset related activities and their legal advisors, as well as DLT industry participants, associations, and stakeholders.

The RA’s key proposals for the Distributed Ledger Technology Foundations Regulations cover: the structure of the DLT Foundations; governance and control; tokens; reporting, disclosures and publication; beneficial ownership; supervision; insolvency and liquidation / voluntary strike off.

This new legislative framework showcases ADGM RA’s recognition of the overall suitability of foundation structures for DLT projects, and the RA’s alignment with ADGM’s strategy to facilitate and support crypto initiatives.

ADGM had received interest concerning the use of ADGM foundations for DLT purposes and the issuance of non-regulated utility tokens. However, whilst foundations are inherently well suited to DLT projects, there are certain features and requirements within ADGM’s current foundations regimes that impose constraints that are not desirable for DLT projects.

The ADGM registration authority, recognizing the overall suitability of foundation structures for DLT projects, seeks to facilitate and support crypto initiatives, as such decided to prepare a new legislative framework to cater for DLT projects and token issuance.

Decentralization is a core principle of many DLT projects, which prizes the transfer of authority and control away from centralized entities or groups to a distributed network of project participants. The perceived advantages of decentralization are rooted in this idea of decentralized governance, which its advocates believe promises a number of benefits, including more equitable ownership and value distribution among stakeholders, insulation from the vested interests of particular individuals or groups, reduced risk of censorship, and greater diversity.

So for these kinds of DLT projects, the concept of the “decentralized autonomous organization” (DAO) has emerged as the ideal-type governance structure.

Qatar’s Financial Center Authority just signed a second MOU for blockchain and digital assets

Qatar’s Financial Center Authority just signed a second MOU for blockchain and digital assets

Once again the Qatar Financial Centre Authority (QFCA) financial business center is on a sprint run with Blockchain, first with its MOU signed with Blockchain solution provider R3 and now with its MOU signed Blockchain SettleMint platform. The agreement with Settlemint will also as with R3 work on Blockchain and digital asset initiatives in the financial sector. 

The MoU aims to explore potential synergies with industry participants, including financial institutions, fintech firms, and corporate organisations, to accelerate the adoption of blockchain and digital asset business models and solutions.

Yousuf Mohamed Al-Jaida, Chief Executive Officer, QFC, stated “We are delighted to collaborate with SettleMint Blockchain LTD to explore use cases of blockchain technology and digital assets in Qatar’s financial industry. This partnership reflects the QFC’s commitment to supporting innovation and identifying new opportunities that benefit our stakeholders and Qatar’s wider financial ecosystem. To that end, we look forward to future joint initiatives with SettleMint.”

Matthew Van Niekerk, Founder & CEO, SettleMint, added, “At SettleMint, we are passionate about empowering developers to easily build on web3 infrastructure and enabling companies to unleash the full potential of blockchain technology for their clients and the ecosystems in which they operate. SettleMint has been supporting the financial industry for several years from experimentation to production application. We are thrilled to partner with the QFC and leverage their expertise and network to drive blockchain adoption and innovation in Qatar’s financial sector.”

Settlemint was one of the first blockchain companies to set up shop in the GCC region back in 2016. By 2021, Settlemint was in discussions in Bahrain and UAE with government and private sectors alongside their partners in the region. 

Settlemint was collaborating on projects in supplychain, finance and banking sectors. 

At the end of 2022, SettleMint raised $18 million in Series A funding led by Molten Ventures. The raised funds were to be used to solidify their position in Europe, Middle East, India and Singapore as well as expand into the Japanese market. 

The First Islamic Bank goes live on UAE Blockchain enabled KYC platform

The First Islamic Bank goes live on UAE Blockchain enabled KYC platform

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) has become the first Islamic bank that went live on the UAE’s KYC (Know Your Customer) Blockchain Platform.

The UAE KYC Blockchain Platform is expected to accelerate the opening of bank accounts for newly registered companies while paving the way for a less cumbersome and costly process of managing KYC data for firms already registered with the system. It will also facilitate a faster, more secure onboarding and exchange of digital customer data and documents; this will be carried out through advanced blockchain-powered distributed technologies.

The initiative was launched in February 2020 by Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) with the partnership of four founding member banks; three listed lenders which are Emirates NBD, Commercial Bank of Dubai (CBD), and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB), in addition to HSBC.

Norbloc Blockchain KYC solution provider implemented the KYC Blockchain platform to facilitate a faster, more secure onboarding and exchange of digital customer data and documents through advanced blockchain-powered distributed technologies, a first of its kind in the region.

Currently, KYC Blockchain Platform has expanded after the joining of Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), Ras Al Khaimah Free Trade Zone (RAKEZ), RAK International Corporate Centre (RAK ICC), the listed Mashreq Bank, and WioBank.

Acting Global Head of Retail Banking at ADIB, Samih Awadhalla, said: “When ADIB joined the UAE KYC Blockchain Consortium, we did so with the clear goal of developing onboarding operations and providing more secure ways of handling and exchanging data.”

The CEO of Dubai Business License Corporation, Ahmad Khalifa Al Falasi, said: “Through this advanced mechanism, we aim to further improve the ease of doing business, and overall, further enhance and ensure regulatory compliance in the UAE.  As blockchain is a breakthrough technology, we see tremendous potential in streamlining services and operations, saving time, money, and resources for everyone involved – individuals, companies, and government bodies.”

Meanwhile, Astyanax Kanakakis, CEO and Co-Founder of norbloc, said: “The continued expansion of the UAE KYC Blockchain Platform to include key banking institutions, such as ADIB, further strengthens the network which has been live for three years now. ADIB is the third financial institution to join from the emirate of Abu Dhabi, ensuring that norbloc’s Fides platform will continue to provide a significantly better KYC experience for both financial institutions and their clients across the UAE.”

In 2022, the Blockchain KYC Fides Platform built by Norbloc for both Dubai Economy and DIFC will become one platform for entire UAE. At the time Dubai Economy and Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) Authority agreed  to consolidate efforts and expand the UAE KYC (Know Your Customer) Blockchain Consortium positioning it as the national corporate e-KYC Platform, making it the first such platform in the region. Previously both entities had launched separate blockchain KYC consortiums both using Norbloc Blockchain platform. DIFC in March of 2020 had launched their initiative with Mashreq Bank, while Dubai Economy had launched with a handful of UAE Banks a month prior to DIFC.  Both DIFC and Dubai Economy had chosen to use the FIDES platform from Blockchain entity Norbloc.

The first phase went live in 2020 and more entities have joined since resulting in the platform holding close to 50 per cent of corporate e-KYC records in UAE.

Dubai Virtual asset regulator warns against dealing with virtual asset exchange OPNX

Dubai Virtual asset regulator warns against dealing with virtual asset exchange OPNX

Dubai’s virtual asset regulator, VARA has issued an alert and warning with regards to virtual asset exchange OPNX (opnx.com) which launched on April 4th 2023.

As per VARA’s announcement investors should note that OPNX is not regulated by VARA and any activity being carried out by them in Dubai is being performed on an unregulated basis.

The warning adds that while OPNX.com claims to offer exchange services for complex VA products including but not limited to derivatives and tokenized bankruptcy claims. These products have not been reviewed by VARA, and may not be suitable for all investors;

As per Dubai Law No. (4) of 2022: mandates that all VA Activity must be regulated in order to be deemed permissible in this jurisdiction, and as such, OPNX is not legally authorised to provide any VA services from/in the Emirate of Dubai; and

Cabinet Resolution No. 111/2022: advises the market to not engage with unregulated VASPs

Any promotions, advertising, solicitation and/or marketing of opnx.com or its native token FLEX has not been approved by VARA, and OPNX is hence not permitted to offer, promote or advertise any of its products or services in/from Dubai, or to residents of the Emirate.

The alert also noted that given that OPNX’s products and services are not permitted to be made available to Dubai residents, the market may wish to notify VARA at varaconnect@vara.ae if anyone has been (i) a subject of any of OPNX’s solicitation/ promotional activities; or (ii) their services have been made available to users in the UAE.

UAE Securities and Commodities Authority and Dubai’s Virtual asset regulator race against the clock to regulate virtual asset entities

UAE Securities and Commodities Authority and Dubai’s Virtual asset regulator race against the clock to regulate virtual asset entities

The virtual regulatory environment is heating up in Dubai and across the UAE as both UAE’s Securities and Commodities Authority and VARA race towards regulating virtual asset entities both across UAE as well as in Dubai. The UAE Securities and Commodities Authority in a recent press release announced that it has opened up registration for those seeking licenses as virtual asset providers across UAE and has added new licensing virtual asset sectors, while Dubai’s VARA is working with both the Dubai’s Department of Economy and Dubai’s free zones to ensure the set deadline of 30th April for all initial disclosure questionnaires (IDQs).

As stated in the release all virtual asset providers who have a presence in the UAE with exception to those who are licensed in financial free zones are required to apply for a license from UAE SCA authority while entities in Dubai should apply through the unified requirement of both Dubai’s Virtual Asset Authority and SCA enabling them to quickly and easily received their virtual asset service provider licenses.

As per the recent regulations set forth by UAE SCA regarding the operation of virtual asset platforms under Article 3, virtual asset providers in the UAE are not allowed to trade virtual assets until after they have been listed as official licensed virtual asset service providers by the regulatory bodies.

As per article 6 SCA can request documents from virtual asset providers and has the right to oversee, regulate and review the activities of virtual asset platforms. UAE SCA will also have the right to approve virtual assets traded on these platforms as part of the officially accepted virtual asset list.

UAE SCA added that as per recent amendments, SCA has also added other regulated activities to its list of licenses, including virtual asset brokerage services, virtual asset custodians, virtual asset operators, and virtual asset service providers as well as virtual asset wallets.

But this is not all, Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority also announced it is working with Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) and Free Zone Authorities (FZAs), towards meeting the set deadline of 30th April for all initial disclosure questionnaires (IDQs) across the sector to be received as the first step towards the migration of the market to a regulated regime.

Under Cabinet resolution No. 111 of 2022 concerning the regulation of virtual assets and their service providers, which came into effect on 15th January 2023, all companies operating in or seeking to operate in this sector in or from the emirate of Dubai must be licensed by VARA. VARA has been actively engaged, with DET and Dubai’s numerous FZAs to facilitate the seamless transition of existing Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) into the VARA regulatory regime as well as formalize the application process for new regulated licenses.

Helal Saeed Almarri, Director-General of DET, said, “Under the directive of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, we are making progress with Dubai’s D33 Agenda which outlines our mission to establish the Emirate as the capital of the Future Economy anchored by Metaverse, AI, Web3.0 and Blockchain. The virtual assets sector that spans all these pillars is integral to the strategy presenting a dynamically evolving ecosystem that fuels all aspects of sustainable economic growth. Ensuring that our marketplace is secure, participants are responsible, and investors and consumers are effectively protected is our top priority. With key stakeholders responsible for commercial licensing across the Emirate working closely to deploy VARA’s full market regulatory construct, we aim to set a benchmark that positions the Emirate of Dubai as a global role model for VA sector development”.

Legacy market operators carrying out VA activities in Dubai (excluding DIFC) are required to declare their desire to undertake regulated activities by submitting an IDQ to their current licensing authority – DET or any of FZAs, by the final deadline of 30th April 2023. Upon subsequent receipt of an Application Acknowledgement Notice (AAN), operating VASPs will commence the appropriate course of action for those requiring regulation or registration under VARA by 31st August 2023.

Dr. Mohammed Al Zarooni, Secretary-General of the Dubai Free Zones Council, added, “Dubai’s Free Zones have been an integral part of the business landscape for decades, providing start-ups, entrepreneurs and overseas companies looking to establish regional headquarters with access to a geographically strategic, multicultural, dynamic and bureaucracy-free environment. We have witnessed growing interest from virtual assets-focused entities who are keen to adhere to the VARA licensing regime. Adopting the new regulations, provides a safe and sustainable operating environment for VA companies and further establishes Dubai as a credible destination for this sector”.

A total of seven distinct types of regulated VA activity licenses can be applied for: Advisory Services, Broker-Dealer Services, Custody Services, Exchange Services, Lending and Borrowing Services, Transfer and Settlement Services and Management and Investment Services.

Commenting on the imminent April deadline to receive all legacy operator IDQs as the first phase of the migration plans, Henson Orser, Chief Executive Officer, VARA, said, “VARA has been working closely with both DET and the emirate’s Free Zone Authorities in order to ensure a smooth transition for legacy VASPs in Dubai, many of whom were at the forefront of innovation in this space. This transition was further supported by VARA’s Minimum Viable Product (MVP) program, a time bound initiative that enabled new applicants to set up operations and become market ready until official release of our full suite of regulations on 7th February 2023. The introduction of the Virtual Assets and Related Activities Regulations gives the existing companies, a clear timeline to ensure that they submit their initial disclosures by the end of April.”