In a bid to drive more adoption to the cryptocurrency industry, financial officials in the United Arab Emirates have agreed to legally legalize and encourage cryptocurrency trading in a Dubai economic free zone.
The Dubai World Trade Centre Authority (DWTCA) announced on Wednesday that it had reached an agreement with the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) of the United Arab Emirates to assist the regulation and trading of crypto assets within the DWTCA free zone.
The new effort creates a structure that allows the DWTCA to provide the appropriate approvals and licenses for cryptocurrencies-related financial activity.
The SCA will also oversee significant crypto-related activities like issuance, listing, trading, and licensing as part of the agreement.
The agreement was signed by SCA acting CEO Maryam Al Suwaidi, DWTCA director-general Helal Saeed Al Marri, and a Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing officer, according to the release.
The new project, according to Al Suwaidi, is in accordance with the DWTCA’s goal to expand its services as a free zone and embrace emerging technologies like nonfungible tokens.
“As Dubai pursues an innovation-driven and digital-led economy, the DWTCA is eager to assist enterprises that are based on blockchain and cryptography technologies,” he added.
In May, the authorities signed a similar deal to encourage the development of the crypto industry in the Dubai Airport Free Zone Authority.
The new agreement reaffirms the UAE’s growing commitment to being a crypto-friendly global financial centre.
Minister of Economy Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri stated in April that cryptocurrencies and asset tokenization will be critical to the country’s goals to double its GDP in ten years.
In June, the local stock exchange, Nasdaq Dubai, listed a public Bitcoin (BTC) fund managed by 3iQ, a Canadian digital asset investment fund manager.
