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ARTICLE · 30 MARCH 2023

VARA's New Regulations For Virtual Assets In Dubai

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On March 2022, the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority ("VARA") was established by Law No. 4 of 2022, in the Emirate of Dubai, to regulate all activities related to the virtual assets sector...

United Arab EmiratesTechnology
Jad A. Taha
Jad A. Taha
Nanda Al Qazaz
Nanda Al Qazaz
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On March 2022, the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority ("VARA") was established by Law No. 4 of 2022, in the Emirate of Dubai, to regulate all activities related to the virtual assets sector throughout the Emirate, including special development zones and free zones, but excluding the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).
On February 7, 2023, VARA issued its Virtual Assets and Related Activities Regulations 2023 (the "Regulations") applicable to all virtual assets service providers.

VARA is an independent regulator for virtual assets, and regulated virtual assets include cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

The Regulations cover seven licensed virtual asset activities, including advisory, broker-dealer, custody, exchange, lending and borrowing, payments and remittance, and virtual assets management and investment services.

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