Crypto.com Obtains Full Dubai Operational License

• Crypto.com has won full approval to operate in Dubai and will start with offering services to institutional investors.

• The firm said the development makes it a first for a global crypto firm to be operational with fiat in the UAE.

Singapore-based digital asset exchange Crypto.com has received full operational approval from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) for its local entity, the firm said on Tuesday.

CRO DAX Middle East FZE is now on VARA’s public register, and as a first step, institutional investors in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will now be able to use the Crypto.com exchange.

Various authorities within the UAE have given regulatory approvals to several crypto entities in the past few months, including Deribit, M2, Rain, Nexo, Fasset, and OKX.

Crypto.com said the full license from VARA “marks a first for a global crypto operator to be operational with fiat in the UAE.”

The firm also said it has plans for other product launches, including additional retail-user focused products.

The past year has seen Crypto.com go from the highs of approvals to operate in Singapore, France, Brazil and the U.K., to fines in the Netherlands, workforce cuts, and difficulties maintaining fiat on-ramps during last year’s banking crisis.

“Launching with our world-class Crypto.com Exchange institutional services will be fundamental to our continued growth and success in such a key market for our company,” said Eric Anziani, president and chief operating officer of Crypto.com.