The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume has received in-principle approval to operate in the capital of the United Arab Emirates.
Despite receiving preliminary approval by Abu Dhabi Global Markets to operate as a broker-dealer in virtual assets, Binance Holdings still has to complete the application process.
However, Richard Teng, former ADGM executive and head of Binance in the Middle East and North Africa, said that once the company is fully licensed by the authority, a subsidiary could offer virtual asset services across the region.
Teng added, “As part of its continued commitment to uphold global standards and foster the growth and sustainable development of the crypto ecosystem as a whole, Binance is actively engaging global regulators, such as ADGM, is.”
The move to Abu Dhabi marks another expansion into the Persian Gulf for the global crypto exchange, following approvals in Bahrain and Dubai, the commercial capital of the United Arab Emirates. Following the latter’s approval, CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao said that Dubai would serve as his base for “the foreseeable future”.
He also said that by “any general interpretation” Dubai would serve as the company’s headquarters, adding that many of the firm’s employees intend to relocate there themselves.
Dubai is the regional crypto capital
Last year, Binance began working with the Dubai World Trade Center to establish an international virtual asset ecosystem in Dubai, as part of the UAE’s effort to become a global crypto hub.
To meet these ambitions, there has been a flurry of approvals for other cryptocurrency exchanges in the Persian Gulf consortium over the past few months.
In addition to Binance, FTX received a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license in Dubai last month. However, the distinction of getting the first approval went to BitOsys, which also received provisional approval from the city’s regulatory body.
Meanwhile, crypto platforms Bybit and Crypto.com announced that they had received approval on the same day last month.