Banking & Finance

Crypto giant OKX bullish on UAE launch

October 10, 2024, 7:51 PM

AED trades supported
Platform trades $1.5bn daily
Launch follows 2-year compliance process

Cryptocurrency exchange company OKX has launched operations for retail and institutional investors in the UAE.

UAE residents will be able to deposit and withdraw AED from all Emirates bank accounts and trade more than 280 cryptocurrencies and 480 trading pairs.

The Seychelles-based crypto trading platform has more than 50 million customers in 200 international markets according to crypto data company Coingecko.

Arabic language customer support is offered on the OKX website and app. Qualified (those with AED500,000) and institutional investors who meet specific criteria will have access to derivatives trading.

OKX Middle East manager Rifad Mahasneh said that the company is “bullish” on its potential business in the UAE, where he says they will focus for now, before considering other markets.

While competition will be fierce in Dubai, where global exchanges such as eToro, Nomura’s Laser Digital and Binance have established significant operations, Mahasneh said OKX’s UAE offering will differ from its rivals.

“There’s always extra layers of fees or friction when you buy through multiple brokers. Buying in dirhams, you can go directly and be matched with another user in the UAE to trade,” Mahasneh said.

OKX trades more than $1.5 billion daily according to pricing tracker Coinmarketcap. It will also offer regulated derivatives products to institutional and qualified retail investors.

The Mena region is ranked as the world’s seventh-largest crypto market in 2024, according to analysts Chainalysis. It accounted for 7.5 percent of global cryptocurrency transaction volume between July 2023 and June 2024, totalling $339 billion.

OKX’s launch in the UAE came after a two-year compliance process with Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority.

“Users are citing regulations when they pick exchanges to trade, even on the retail side. It’s no longer about the product itself,” Mahasneh said.

Confidence also comes from its ability to detect and report illegal activity, he added. “We have the global best standard when it comes to this, specifically on reporting suspicious transactions.”