During an interview with Bloomberg in Davos, Switzerland, Thani Al Zeyoudi, the UAE minister of state for foreign trade, said that “The most important thing is that we ensure global governance when it comes to cryptocurrencies and crypto companies.”
He shared that one area the UAE is looking to expand is cryptocurrencies, adding that crypto will play a major role in the UAE trade going forward.
Read more: Davos: UAE still wants to be a crypto hub
“We started attracting some of the companies to the country with the aim that we’ll build together the right governance and legal system, which are needed,” the official noted.
Al Olama
Omar Sultan Al Olama, UAE Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy, and Remote Work Applications, also talked about cryptocurrency regulation in a World Economic Forum session titled “Finding the right balance for crypto” in Davos.
He confirmed that no crypto exchanges have been licensed in the UAE, emphasizing that the regulatory frameworks for cryptocurrencies in the UAE are “not light.”
The Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), which was established in March, also states on its website that no operating permits have been granted to date. Under UAE law, VARA is in charge of licensing and regulating the crypto sector in the Emirate of Dubai and its free zone territories (excluding DIFC).
However, VARA has granted a provisional license to a number of cryptocurrency exchanges, including Binance, FTX, Okx, Bitoasis, and CoinMENA.
