UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani Al-Zeyoudi says cryptocurrencies will play an “important role” in the future of global trade for the UAE.
Speaking with Bloomberg Jan. 20 in Davos, Switzerland — where world leaders are currently meeting for the 2023 World Economic Forum — Al Zeyoudi gave a series of updates on the UAE’s trade policies and partnerships through 2023.
Commenting on the cryptocurrency sector, the minister stated that “cryptocurrencies will play an important role in UAE trade in the future,” noting that “the most important thing is that we ensure global governance when it comes to cryptocurrencies and crypto companies.”
Al-Zeyoudi suggested that while the UAE works on its own regulatory regime for cryptocurrencies, the focus will be on making the Gulf country a hub for crypto-friendly policies that are also adequately protected:
“We started to attract some companies to the country with the aim of building a proper governance system and legal system, which is necessary.”
Al-Zeyoudi’s comments come just a week after the UAE Cabinet issued a new regulation that essentially guarantees that entities involved in cryptocurrency activities must obtain a license and approval from the Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA).
If the companies fail to do so, they face fines of up to $2.7 million under the new law. The move adds to the “Guidelines” for the regulation and supervision of digital assets published by the financial regulator of the Abu Dhabi Global Market Free Economic Zone in September.
The principles outline a friendly attitude towards crypto, with a commitment to comply with international standards for anti-money laundering (AML), countering the financing of terrorism (CFT) and support for financial sanctions.
The UAE Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Economy, Omar Sultan Al Olama, also appeared at the World Economic Forum as part of a panel focusing on cryptocurrencies on January 3rd.
The scholars noted that while the FTX debacle is a major concern, the UAE still wants to be the focus despite all the ordeal.
“these [empresas de criptomoedas] Calling the UAE home is definitely a positive.
The minister also distanced the UAE from allegations that its cities like Dubai tend to become hot spots for disgraced cryptocurrency figures to flee to, arguing that “bad actors have no nationality and no destiny.”
He stressed, however, that governments need to work together to prevent bad actors from disappearing abroad.
“You’ll see them everywhere. You’ll see them in the Bahamas, and you’ll see them in New York and London, and what we need to do is because governments work together, and also with industry, to make sure that if someone does something wrong, they can’t move from one place to another.” .