Crypto exchange Kraken to operate in UAE

The U.S. trading platoform will expand its operations in Middle East and North Africa region.

Kraken is the first global cryptocurrency exchange to receive a Financial Services Permission (FSP) licence to operate a regulated virtual asset trading platform in the UAE.

“We are delighted to have received full approval, and to soon launch regulated AED markets that will sit adjacent to Kraken’s industry-leading ecosystem of crypto products, including staking, spot markets across 120+ crypto assets, regulated futures, and our forthcoming NFT marketplace. We are excited to expand our products and services in the MENA region in the months and years ahead” said Curtis Ting, Managing Director of EMEA at Kraken.

Kraken gained regulatory approval from the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the International Financial Centre in Abu Dhabi, and its Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA). The platform will now establish its Middle East headquarters in ADGM and will be the first global virtual assets exchange group in the UAE to offer investors the ability to invest, trade, withdraw and deposit virtual assets directly in local AED currency.

ADGM introduced the world’s first comprehensive and robust virtual asset regulatory framework in 2018 and has since established itself as a leading global hub and business platform for virtual asset activities for local, regional and international firms. ADGM’s virtual asset framework is well recognised globally for its comprehensive regulations and applications and it is the largest regulated jurisdiction of virtual assets in the MENA region. Recently, UAE has adopted its first law that regulate digital assets and established an agency to regulate the market and oversee crypto activities in order to become a regional and global destination for this industry.

Founded in 2011, Kraken is the first ever global crypto exchange to receive a licence, and serves a client base of more than 9 million across 60 countries.