Kraken gets Abu Dhabi nod to offer full services in MENA

Kraken gets Abu Dhabi nod to offer full services in MENA

 

Abu Dhabi Global Market has awarded a full financial license to crypto exchange Kraken. "Kraken will be the first global virtual asset exchange group in the UAE to offer investors the ability to invest, trade, withdraw, and deposit virtual assets (bitcoin and ether) directly in local AED currency," the regulator explained. 

Kraken Establishes Its Middle East Headquarters

Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) announced on Monday that cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has become "the first global virtual assets exchange group in the UAE to receive a full financial license from ADGM."

Abu Dhabi Global Market is a free zone and international financial centre in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It is the largest regulated jurisdiction for virtual asset activities in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

The regulator explained:

"Kraken is the first global cryptocurrency exchange to receive a Financial Services Permission (FSP) licence to operate a regulated virtual asset exchange platform in the ADGM to service the needs of the Middle East and North Africa region."

"Kraken has met all approval conditions from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of ADGM to operate as a Virtual Asset Multilateral Trading Facility (MTF) and Custodian in Abu Dhabi and the wider UAE," the announcement details.

Noting that Kraken has established its Middle East headquarters in ADGM, the regulator said:

"Kraken will be the first global virtual asset exchange group in the UAE to offer investors the ability to invest, trade, withdraw, and deposit virtual assets directly in local AED currency."

Earlier this month, the FSRA issued a discussion paper on decentralised finance (Defi). The regulator published a consultation paper proposing significant amendments to its capital markets framework, including in crypto assets, in March.

The FSRA also awarded cryptocurrency exchange Binance in-principle approval this month "to operate as a broker-dealer in virtual assets."