Cryptocurrency companies are rushing to set up a shop in Dubai after launching virtual asset licenses. This gives the Gulf countries the latest jurisdiction to become a paradise for the global cryptocurrency industry.
Exchange ByBit, which announced last week that it will relocate its global headquarters from Singapore to Dubai, has joined key industry players Crypto.com, FTX and Binance to build a foothold in the city.
Dubai’s enthusiasm among crypto companies comes from diminishing expectations for Singapore as a digital asset hub. Singapore has approved only a handful of crypto groups that have applied for licenses, but Dubai has attracted some industry tycoons in the weeks following the launch of the licensing scheme.
Singapore Emerging crypto hub in Asia, After China cracked down on digital assets last year. Today, crypto caravans have advanced as some companies turn to more receptive regulatory regimes in the Gulf.
Changpeng Zhao, CEO of Binance, who moved from Singapore to Dubai, said the Gulf governments have attracted crypto companies with an “open mindset and business-friendly attitude.”
Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange in terms of trading volume, has discussed the rules currently regulated in Dubai. In December, Binance signed a contract with the Dubai World Trade Center, a tax-exempt business park, to advise on the regulatory status of cryptocurrencies in the Emirate. The virtual asset regulator, launched earlier this month, issued a license to Binance.
Zhao said Binance urged the establishment of a custom regulator, calling the decision “very good” and praising the Dubai authorities as “the smartest regulators and government officials in the world.”
However, Dubai’s virtual asset enthusiasts, given the recent decision by the Financial Task Force, a global money laundering watchdog, to put the United Arab Emirates on the so-called enhanced “greylist”. Recruitment is alarming in some financial circles. Monitoring procedures to prevent the flow of dirty money.
UK and US lawyers and former regulators said licenses from the Emirate probably did little to convince Western regulators that crypto exchanges were under proper supervision.
Britain also Become a crypto “global hub”, After Mayor John Glenn declared in a speech on Monday that the country wants to be attractive to “companies that do not yet have a settled base.” However, lawyers point out that the government needs to guide UK regulators, including the FCA, to make crypto operators more acceptable.
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Dubai’s crypto charm attack quickly attracted several businesses. FTX Europe, a Swiss-based exchange, announced in March that it would establish a regional headquarters after obtaining a license in Dubai. Headquartered in Singapore, Crypto.com added a Middle East office in the city last week. BitOasis, a Dubai-based crypto exchange, also obtained an interim license last week.
According to Zhao, Binance has selected Dubai as its regional headquarters, which already has about 200 staff in its three offices. In comparison, he said, “The Singaporean government is taking a slightly more cautious approach.”
Binance Singapore Unit in December I deleted that application After regulatorys ordered Binance Singapore to stop all cryptocurrency transfers on the global exchange binance.com, we licensed to operate a crypto business in the country.
Overall, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has granted only four crypto licenses after receiving 176 oversight applications. More than 100 companies have been rejected, but about dozens still want a green light.
“Singapore’s crypto sector is disappointed because of its very low success rate at MAS,” said Chia-Ling Koh, director of Osborne Clarke, a law firm that put together the numbers.
MAS also earlier this year Total ban on cryptocurrency advertisingAccording to Nizam Ismail, CEO of crypto consultancy Ethikom, this is interpreted as “a strong disappointment by MAS for providing crypto to consumers.” “It seemed a bit tough. It was announced and implemented overnight.”
Parliamentarians also tightened control in a move that ministers said would protect Singapore from “risk of reputation.” this week By passing new rules that prevent city-state crypto companies from doing business abroad without a license.
Xue Kai Pang, CEO of Tokocrypto, a nearby Indonesian cryptocurrency exchange, said: .. .. There are more open countries like Dubai. “
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