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Blockchain.com to Open Dubai Office After Securing Preliminary Regulatory Approval

The crypto exchange joins a number of companies expanding to the Middle East as Dubai aims to turn itself into a leading cryptocurrency hub.

Updated May 11, 2023, 4:22 p.m. Published Sep 9, 2022, 6:35 p.m.

Blockchain.com is opening an office in Dubai. (shutterlk/Shutterstock)

Blockchain.com has won provisional regulatory approval to operate in Dubai, according to a Reuters report.

The London-based exchange has signed a contract with Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) – the city’s new digital assets regulations agency – to open up an office in the emirate, the story said, though it remains unclear when hiring for the office will begin.

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In July, Dubai’s crown prince unveiled The Dubai Metaverse Strategy, a plan to welcome more than 1,000 firms to the city and create more than 40,000 crypto jobs by 2030. The initiative underscored the city’s commitment to convert itself into the Gulf region’s premier crypto hub.

Blockchain.com joins the ranks of several prominent crypto firms that have secured full or preliminary regulatory approvals to operate in Dubai in recent months, FTX, OKX and Crypto.com among them.

Blockchain.com Dubai Crypto Middle East

Elizabeth Napolitano

Elizabeth Napolitano was a data journalist at CoinDesk, where she reported on topics such as decentralized finance, centralized cryptocurrency exchanges, altcoins, and Web3. She has covered technology and business for NBC News and CBS News. In 2022, she received an ACP national award for breaking news reporting.