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Cryptocurrency

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao

Binance CEO says ‘shaken’ crypto market needs ‘a lot more’ scrutiny

Confidence in the crypto industry has been “shaken” and it needs to open up to “a lot more” oversight from regulators, the chief executive of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange has said. Changpeng Zhao, the CEO and co-founder of Binance, added that the crypto sector should adopt some regulations from the traditional finance industry. Zhao’s […]

Crypto Saudi UAE

Crypto giant Binance eyes UAE acquisitions and Saudi expansion

Crypto exchange Binance is in talks with financial regulators in Saudi Arabia to expand into the kingdom. The company is also eyeing web3 tech investments in the UAE, and has appointed a fund manager based in Abu Dhabi. Binance, which is the world’s biggest crypto exchange, saw a 49 percent year-to-date increase in its Mena […]

Binance

Wealthy fintechs will find it hard to buy Gulf banks, says expert

Wealthy financial technology (fintech) companies won’t find it easy to buy banks in the Middle East or other developed economies, no matter how much money they’re willing to put on the table. A top banking executive expressed this view as reports that Binance, the world’s biggest crypto exchange, may go on a $1 billion acquisition […]

Adnoc Adipec

Adnoc’s new pilot scheme to address UAE’s carbon footprint

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) chose this week’s Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conferences (Adipec) to announce a partnership with Siemens Energy to pilot blockchain technology to certify the carbon intensity of a range of products. By using smart sensor data gathered from across Adnoc’s operational chain – from the oil well to the customer […]

Islamic finance to grow 10%, but struggles in new markets

The global Islamic finance industry will expand by 10 percent in 2022 and 2023 thanks to strong economic growth in core markets, high commodity prices and relatively little impact from the Russia-Ukraine war. However, data from S&P Global Ratings forecasts shows that the sector has struggled to make inroads in non-traditional markets outside the Gulf. Excluding […]

PIF sets up company to make Saudi a global hub for halal

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is launching a new business, the Halal Products Development Company (HPDC), to support the production of halal goods in the kingdom. The PIF company, unveiled today, aims to make Saudi Arabia a major exporter of halal products including food, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. It also plans to drive innovation and efficiency […]

Metaverse

‘The metaverse can change the way we school our children’

Some schools still rely on more traditional teaching methods but an Emirati entrepreneur believes the metaverse has the potential to extend the physical classroom experience. Using blended learning options such as augmented and virtual reality technologies, Amin Al Zarouni, CEO of UAE-based Web3 company Bedu, is aiming to give the Gulf’s education system an overhaul. […]

Future Collars has helped several thousand people gain the skills to enter the tech industry, the majority being women

Royal seal of approval for Polish firm to solve Gulf’s tech issue

A member of the royal family in the UAE is backing a Polish firm’s entry to the Gulf as it aims to address the severe skill shortage in the region’s technology sector. Future Collars is a digital IT training company that has worked with Amazon, Accenture and BNP Paribas to train highly skilled workers. Headquartered […]

A woman pays for her coffee with crypto at a cashless cafe in Singapore
  • Opinion

Ethereum has switched. Your move, bitcoin

It's been more than a month since the ethereum switch, and while its market cap has fallen and bitcoin's has stayed flat, many think it's only a matter of time

Saudi crypto

Saudi Arabia reports 195% rise in crypto trading

The Middle East and North Africa region saw $566 billion in cryptocurrency trading between July 2021 and June 2022, a year-on-year increase of 48 percent, making it the fastest growing region in the world. The 2022 Geography of Cryptocurrency report, by New York-based blockchain data platform Chainalysis, found that Saudi Arabia was one of the […]

AIDA is the first development Dar Al Arkan are building in Oman

Saudi developer to sell utility NFTs on its $1.6bn Oman project

Saudi Arabia’s largest listed real estate developer plans to drop a limited number of utility non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for its $1.6 billion project in Oman next month. Unlike the art and collectibles digital asset, utility non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are built to give their holders certain perks, such as exclusive access to events and items or […]

India fans in the stands of Dubai International Stadium, ahead of their cricket team's Asian Cup match against Pakistan on September 4
  • Analysis

India reaps early benefits from its trade deal with UAE

India’s non-oil exports to the UAE have recorded double-digit growth since the two nations signed a trade deal earlier this year. New Delhi’s Ministry of Commerce reported that exports to the UAE, excluding petroleum products, grew to $5.92 billion in June-August, from $5.17 billion during June-August 2021 – an increase of 14 percent. India’s global […]

Islamic finance set to embrace metaverse and cryptos

The Islamic finance industry is ripe for growth in the fields of crypto, digital assets and open banking, according to new research published by IslamicMarkets.com. A study published this week by the platform found that nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of Islamic finance professionals predict the sector’s level of adoption of crypto and digital assets will […]

Binance secures Dubai licence to offer crypto services

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has received the minimal viable product (MVP) license from Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) following the issuance of its provisional license in March 2022, WAM, the UAE state-owned news agency, reported. The MVP license will allow Binance to offer an approved range of virtual asset-related services to qualified retail and institutional […]

Man on laptop

DeFi could go mainstream, with a little help from Gulf regulators

For those who imagine a world without banks, decentralised finance – better known as DeFi – is an empowering development in the crypto universe. So, how does it put users in charge of their own finances?  DeFi is the provision of financial products and services without the need for intermediaries such as banks, exchanges or […]

Central Bank of the UAE

Central banks go digital, bit by bit

The turmoil in cryptocurrency markets this year has been a wake-up call to investors and regulators, prompting questions about how viable many digital currencies really are. According to CoinMarketCap, the total value of cryptocurrencies has slumped from almost $3 trillion in November 2021 to less than $1 trillion in September this year.  But not all […]

A shopkeeper shows off her bitcoin wallet. The digital currency gained 27 percent in July

The beginner’s guide to cryptocurrencies

Cryptocurrencies are a new form of digital money that are not issued or maintained by central authorities. Instead, they usually operate through blockchain technology, a shared digital database that facilitates and records transactions between individuals.  The use of blockchain technology means crypto transactions tend to be cheaper and faster than those involving traditional fiat currencies. […]

The Bhukkad Cafe in Dubai began accepting cryptrocurrency as a means of creating awareness of the payment system

Should your business jump on the bandwagon?

From groceries to luxury properties, hotel stays to coffees, burgers to business licenses, consumers in the UAE can now buy it all using cryptocurrency. But, even as several bricks-and-mortar businesses jump on the crypto bandwagon and regulations evolve, experts say the uptake is modest and widespread adoption in the Gulf state is still about five […]

Wristwatch, Coin, Money

Saudi Arabia hires new head for digital currency programme

Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) has appointed Mohsen Al-Zahrani to head its digital currency programme, Bloomberg reported. The kingdom had taken a conservative approach on virtual assets until now, given their speculative nature, the report quoted unnamed sources as saying. Neightbouring Gulf state, the United Arab Emirates, has taken the lead to become a global crypto […]