Dubai expands regulated virtual asset market

Dubai’s virtual asset sector has reached a fresh regulatory marker after the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority issued its 50th Virtual Asset Service Provider licence to Tribe Tokenisation FZE, strengthening the emirate’s push to build a supervised digital-finance industry.

The licence, recorded on VARA’s public register as VL/26/06/002 and issued on 22 June 2026, authorises Tribe Tokenisation FZE for broker-dealer services. Its addition takes the number of active licensed VASPs under the Dubai framework to 50, covering exchanges, broker-dealers, custodians, advisory firms, management and investment platforms, lending businesses and virtual-asset issuers.

The milestone underlines how Dubai has moved from policy ambition to a more structured licensing market since VARA was established in March 2022. The regulator oversees virtual asset activity across Dubai’s mainland and free zones, excluding the Dubai International Financial Centre, which operates under a separate financial regulatory system. VARA’s framework was designed to bring crypto businesses, tokenisation platforms and digital asset intermediaries into a rule-based environment rather than leaving them to operate through lightly supervised structures.

Tribe Tokenisation FZE is registered at the Dubai World Trade Centre and has positioned itself around tokenised property investment. Its platform model allows investors to access fractional exposure to real estate assets through digital tokens, with governance rights, disclosure of fees and secondary-market exit options forming part of its commercial pitch. The company had earlier stated that it held in-principle approval from VARA for broker-dealer activities. The new listing moves it into the licensed category, though operational launch remains subject to regulatory conditions.

An active licence does not automatically mean a firm has begun full commercial operations. Newly licensed VASPs may still need to complete controlled operational requirements before offering services to clients or expanding market activity. At the end of 2025, 39 licensed VASPs were classified as fully operational, showing that licence numbers and live market activity are related but not identical indicators.

Dubai’s register shows that broker-dealer services dominate the licensing pipeline, but the market has widened over the past two years. Binance FZE, Crypto. com’s Foris DAX Middle East FZE, OKX Middle East Fintech FZE, Deribit FZE, BitOasis Technologies FZE, BitGo entities, Zand Bank, HashKey MENA FZE and several specialist platforms are among the firms listed with permissions spanning trading, custody, exchange services, derivatives, lending, management and investment activities. This mix indicates that Dubai is trying to build a complete digital-asset ecosystem rather than a market led only by retail trading platforms.

The expansion comes as real-world asset tokenisation becomes a more prominent theme in global digital finance. Tokenisation seeks to represent assets such as real estate, bonds, commodities or funds on blockchain-based systems, allowing fractional ownership, faster settlement and potentially wider investor access. The model also carries risks around valuation, custody, liquidity, governance rights, cyber security and investor understanding, making regulatory scrutiny central to its credibility.

VARA’s licensing process examines governance, ownership, financial resilience, technology, cyber controls, risk management, compliance and anti-money laundering systems. Licensed firms remain subject to continuing supervision, which is critical in a sector still affected globally by exchange failures, fraud cases, unstable tokens and uneven investor-protection standards.

Dubai has also tightened its wider virtual-asset regime in 2026. Updated rulebooks have clarified the treatment of virtual-asset derivatives and token issuance, while new anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing guidance has placed greater emphasis on business risk assessment. The direction of travel is toward more granular supervision, especially as firms move from simple spot trading into asset management, structured products and tokenised securities-like offerings.