The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) has approved the UAE dirham-backed stablecoin DDSC to go live on ADI Chain, marking a significant milestone in the UAE’s regulated digital finance landscape. The announcement was made by IHC, Sirius International Holding and First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) on Wednesday.
The dirham-backed stablecoin will operate on ADI Chain, an institutional Layer-2 blockchain developed by the Abu Dhabi-based ADI Foundation.
“DDSC marks a defining milestone in the UAE’s digital finance journey. With the Central Bank’s approval and our transition into live operation, we are delivering trusted, institutional-grade infrastructure that strengthens resilience, accelerates innovation and expands what is possible in regulated digital payments,” said Syed Basar Shueb, CEO of IHC.
DDSC to support institutional and government-led use cases
DDSC builds on the stablecoin initiative first announced in April 2025 by IHC and FAB, and now enters its operational phase with Sirius International Holding, IHC’s technology-focused subsidiary, joining the project to support deployment, integration and institutional adoption.
Designed as a compliant digital financial instrument for institutional and government-led use cases, DDSC is positioned to support high-value applications with a trusted regulatory framework, including payments and collections, high-value settlement and treasury operations, trade and supply-chain flows and programmable financial services for regulated entities.
“As a UAE dirham-backed, programmable stablecoin, DDSC is designed to modernize payments, settlement, and treasury workflows, while enabling secure, automated value transfer, including future machine-to-machine transactions and trade between AI agents as the autonomous economy evolves,” Shueb added.
It is expected to be made available to FAB customers through multiple approved platforms, supporting institutional and enterprise use cases while maintaining the highest standards of compliance, transparency and operational integrity.
“This milestone underscores that stablecoins can be integrated responsibly into the financial system when built to meet rigorous regulatory and risk requirements. As the UAE’s global bank, FAB is enabling DDSC to seamlessly combine regulatory oversight with blockchain infrastructure, providing secure, scalable solutions that support institutional and government clients across the UAE’s evolving digital economy,” said Futoon Hamdan AlMazrouei, Group Head of Personal, Business, Wealth and Privileged Client Banking Group at First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB).
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DDSC enters operational phase as UAE advances regulated digital finance
DDSC will operate on the ADI Chain, purpose-built for governance, scalability and institutional performance. ADI Chain is designed to bridge traditional financial systems with blockchain-enabled digital asset ecosystems, enabling regulated entities to participate without compromising on oversight, security, or compliance.
The launch of DDSC also reinforces the UAE’s position at the forefront of regulated digital finance and reflects the growing maturity of stablecoins as a core component of modern financial infrastructure.
“With DDSC now live, we are entering a new phase of regulated digital finance. Sirius is proud to support this national initiative by helping accelerate adoption and unlock real-world institutional applications, enabled by ADI’s sovereign blockchain infrastructure and underpinned by the UAE’s clear regulatory leadership,” said Ajay Hans Raj Bhatia, Group CEO of Sirius International Holding.
With approval to go live, DDSC now enters its operational phase, representing a substantive step forward in aligning institutional finance with the evolving digital-asset economy.
