Opinion Finance American business weighs prospect of ‘Trump trade’ Some sectors, such as energy and real estate, stand to gain on an election win July 15, 2024
Finance Hong Kong’s Animoca considers Gulf bourses Animoca Brands, a major Web3 and crypto gaming company valued at nearly $6 billion, is considering a public listing in 2025, with the Gulf and Hong Kong as potential venues. The company’s investors include heavyweights such as Singapore’s Temasek Holdings and the Saudi Arabia government’s Neom project, which injected $50 million into it last year. […] July 5, 2024
Finance Indian crypto exchange buys UAE’s BitOasis CoinDCX, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in India, has bought UAE-based crypto exchange BitOasis for an undisclosed amount. CoinDCX co-founder Sumit Gupta said the move would “establish an even more formidable foothold across the Mena region”. The Middle East-focused BitOasis, founded in 2016 by Ola Doudin, Tarek Kaylani and Daniel Robenek, has processed more than $6 […] July 3, 2024
Finance UAE introduces regulations to clean up crypto market The UAE has taken steps towards regulating its payments sector with the introduction of Payment Token Services Regulation in an attempt to push out fraudulent crypto companies and attract legitimate businesses. The new regulations introduced by the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) focus heavily on stablecoins – digital currencies pegged to a real-world asset […] June 28, 2024
Finance Bahrain remains cautious but crypto pursuit advances Bahrain will not sacrifice its position as a trusted financial centre as it chases cryptocurrency millions, according to the boss of fintech incubator Bahrain FinTech Bay. Earlier this month the kingdom’s central bank gave BitOasis Bahrain, a regional crypto trading platform, a so-called Category 2 crypto-asset services licence. The regulatory approval means that the broker-dealer […] June 25, 2024
Markets Turkey to tax crypto and stock market earnings Turkey is planning to tax income earned from cryptocurrency and stock market trades, as the government seeks new revenue streams to help shore up its public finances. The measures were part of a package unveiled by the finance minister Mehmet Şimşek at a gathering of senior officials of the ruling Justice and Development Party on […] June 5, 2024
Cybersecurity Crypto exchange Rain suffers $15m hack Rain, a cryptocurrency exchange regulated in both the UAE and Bahrain, has confirmed a serious hack resulting in losses reportedly nearing $15 million. The exchange said in a statement on its website on Tuesday that customer funds remain secure despite the incident. The security breach occurred on April 29 and was first detected by blockchain […] May 16, 2024
Analysis Finance Gulf asset managers remain wary of resurgent bitcoin Gulf asset managers and institutional investors remain reluctant to invest in bitcoin, despite the cryptocurrency’s resurgence over the past year. The Middle East and North Africa accounted for 7 percent – or $390 million – of global crypto volumes in the 12 months to June 30, 2023, according to Chainalysis. Turkey made up nearly half, […] May 16, 2024
EXCLUSIVE Finance Binance clamps down on suspicious UAE crypto trades Binance has blocked hundreds of thousands of suspicious cryptocurrency transactions in the UAE as it ramps up compliance efforts, senior executives have told AGBI. The business, which is the world’s largest crypto exchange, received nearly 60,000 law enforcement requests from governments around the world in 2023 after heightened regulatory scrutiny. Meera Judge, the Dubai-based director […] May 7, 2024
Exclusive Finance Tim Draper: UAE benefits from US crypto ‘overregulation’ Billionaire venture capitalist Tim Draper has criticised the US for its restrictive stance on cryptocurrency, claiming it is driving innovators towards more encouraging and friendlier markets such as the UAE. The Gulf state is actively developing regulatory frameworks to lure new forms of business, amid intense regional economic competition. Dubai and Abu Dhabi have set […] May 5, 2024
Analysis Finance Crypto miners see ‘enormous potential’ in the Gulf With cryptocurrencies edging up again after last weekend’s “halving” – in which the rewards Bitcoin miners get for solving problems is cut in two to maintain scarcity – these are heady days for holders of Bitcoin and other virtual currencies. Bitcoin miners have been attracted to the Gulf by cheap electricity and established infrastructure. “GCC […] April 29, 2024
EXCLUSIVE Business of Sport Binance to launch new Ronaldo NFTs ‘soon’ amid legal case Cristiano Ronaldo and the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Binance are to launch a fourth set of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) “soon”, as the footballer faces a $1 billion lawsuit for promoting the company. The Al Nassr and Portugal forward signed a deal with Binance in 2022 to create NFTs – digital collectibles – using his “CR7” […] April 26, 2024
Tech Turkish fintech Midas raises $45m for new products Turkish fintech startup Midas has raised $45 million in equity funding to expand its services and launch new products. The new products include cryptocurrency trading, mutual funds and savings accounts. The funding is among the “biggest ever” Series A fund raise by a Turkish fintech and comes less than three years after Midas was launched. […] April 24, 2024
Analysis Tech The Mena metaverse: moving beyond the hype Two years ago, the concept of metaverse lands transformed from an interesting subculture into a thriving multi-billion-dollar market, capturing the interest of major investors both regionally in the Middle East and globally. Metaverse lands, made of pixels and digital images, refer to buildings and plots within a virtual environment, offering spaces for gaming, socialising, business […] April 12, 2024
Trade Finance platform aims at $2.5trn trade funding hole A blockchain-based platform that lets institutions and wealthy individuals provide finance to importers and exporters for returns of up to 9 percent a year could help fill a multi-trillion-dollar hole in international trade, it says. In trade finance, the involvement of third-party financial companies removes payment and supply risks for sellers and buyers respectively. Historically, […] April 8, 2024
Analysis Banking & Finance DIFC’s law tipped to help digital assets go mainstream The Dubai International Financial Centre has introduced a law to define and regulate digital assets – a move that should herald their integration into more parts of the economy, lawyers have told AGBI. The DIFC legislation came into effect on March 8 and classifies the assets as property. Digitally tracked items such as cryptocurrencies, non-fungible […] March 27, 2024
Banking & Finance Investcorp stays cool on digital assets Investcorp, the Gulf region’s largest alternative investment company, will not be turning to digital assets to boost its bottom line in the short term. The Bahrain company’s Abu Dhabi-listed Investcorp Capital invested more than $639 million in the first half of its financial year to December 31, 2023. The company’s latest financial reports revealed a […] February 13, 2024
Opinion Cybersecurity Fighting cybercrime in the age of quantum computing The Middle East must learn to navigate the threats and the opportunities January 25, 2024
Finance Energy costs push bitcoin mining in Iran underground Rising energy costs and onerous government regulations are forcing much of Iran’s once-blossoming bitcoin mining sector to operate clandestinely, a top industry executive has told AGBI. Bitcoin’s price surged to $46,900 in early January ahead of the launch of bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the US, up from a two-year low of about $15,800 in […] January 24, 2024
Analysis Finance Gulf investors expected to bet big on bitcoin ETFs Gulf sovereign wealth funds and institutional investors are expected to expand their portfolios to include cryptocurrencies, after spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds were given the green light. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the trading of 11 spot bitcoin ETFs, issued by global asset management companies such as BlackRock, Invesco, Grayscale, Fidelity, and Franklin. […] January 16, 2024
Video length: 05:38 Finance Cakes, crypto and the sun – best video moments of 2023 From top business leaders to expert analysts, AGBI has spoken to them all over the past 12 months. Watch our video round-up above to find out who gave us these memorable quotes … “The bigger the cake, the bigger the problem.” “Your long-term asset in this region is not the oil under the ground, it’s […] December 25, 2023
Tech Binance pulls out of licence application in Abu Dhabi Global cryptocurrency exchange Binance has withdrawn its licence application from Abu Dhabi Global Market, the main regulator in the UAE capital, but still wants to join an international exchange in Dubai. The troubled crypto operator withdrew its application on November 7, according to the regulator’s website. “While assessing our global licensing needs, we decided this […] December 8, 2023