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Cryptocurrency

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 […]

  • Analysis

Something old, something new: The Quran goes NFT

In a novel merging of yesterday and tomorrow, one million people have been invited to purchase a non-fungible token (NFT) version of a rare copy of the Quran. MetaDee, a London-based digital NFT marketplace offering artworks and rare collectibles from around the world, has tokenised an exclusive handwritten Holy Quran manuscript by the personal scribe […]

  • Analysis

UAE experts warn investors about ‘under-regulated fintech’

Financial technology (fintech) startups have been big business for investors and consumers in the UAE, but experts have raised concerns about whether they are under-regulated. Fintech startup funding saw steep growth in the UAE in the first half of this year, accounting for a third of all deals, well above the Middle East and North […]

BlackRock may spur wealthy to make crypto leap

Institutional investors and high net worth individuals have traditionally shunned cryptocurrencies as volatile and untrustworthy. The ongoing turbulence in the market, with the value of bitcoin dropping by nearly half so far this year, has not helped sentiment but there are signs this is changing. BlackRock, which has $8.49 trillion of assets under management, yesterday […]

The real estate sector has seen strong growth recently

UAE’s property rules target money laundering via virtual assets

The UAE has introduced new real estate reporting requirements as part of its fight against money laundering. The clampdown is primarily aimed at transactions involving virtual assets, and is a partnership between the Ministry of Economy (MoE), the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and the UAE Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). The new rules will cover the […]

Consolidation coming to Gulf fintech, warns $40bn unicorn VP

Consolidation is coming to the Gulf’s fintech sector, according to Remo Giovanni Abbondandolo, senior vice president for MENA at global payments processor Checkout.com. The London-headquartered fintech, which offers a full-stack platform that simplifies payments processes for large global enterprise merchants, closed a $1 billion Series D funding round in January. “In my opinion, if you’re […]

  • Analysis

Dubai crypto chief predicts a $200k Bitcoin by 2024

“It might get worse,” Vineet Budki, managing partner and CEO at Cypher Capital, told AGBI when asked: Just how bad is the crypto market crash? Yet, the UAE-based venture capital (VC) firm has been deploying millions in Bitcoin, even as cryptocurrencies suffered their most brutal collapse this year. A major sell-off in cryptocurrencies in May […]