UAE Trends and Developments Contributed by: Ildar Yuvakaev, Ruslan Akhmetov, Svetlana Koronova and Sofia Simonova, Consigliere Group
digital assets are becoming an increasingly impor - tant component of investment portfolios. This trend has been supported by the UAE’s growing regulatory framework for virtual assets. The UAE is no longer regulating cryptocurrencies as a separate financial product and is building a legal infrastructure. The specialised ecosystems for digital assets are avail - able across the mainland UAE and free zones like the DIFC, ADGM, RAK, and the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC). In 2023 Ras Al Khaimah launched the RAK Digital Assets Oasis (expanded in 2025 into the Innovation City) as the first free zone dedicated to Web3 and digital assets. The DMCC Crypto Centre operates as a specific ecosystem, giving access not only to licens - ing infrastructure but industry networks and accelera - tor programmes. The ADGM developed a comprehensive legal frame - work for tokenised assets, separating virtual assets and tokenised financial instruments (Digital Securities). A digital token that exhibits the features and charac - teristics of a security is treated as a Digital Security and regulated by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA). Meanwhile, all financial services activities in relation to Digital Securities are subject to the relevant regulatory requirements under the Finan - cial Services and Markets Regulations (FSMR). This provides legal certainty for wealth structures holding tokenised investments and other blockchain-based assets. This is complemented by the Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) Foundations framework – a dedicated legal vehicle that may issue tokens, hold virtual assets and operate through blockchain-based governance. DLT Foundations represent a structuring tool for portfolios that increasingly include tokenised investments and other digital representations of tra - ditional assets. The DIFC has also amended its crypto-token regu - latory framework by introducing Chapter 3A (Crypto Token Requirements) in the General Module (GEN) of the DFSA Rulebook. With effect from 12 January 2026, the DFSA replaced the previous DFSA-led recognised token model with a firm-led suitability assessment for crypto-tokens other than fiat crypto-tokens. As a result, firms operating in or from the DIFC are now
responsible for assessing and documenting whether a crypto-token is suitable for use in their regulated activ - ities. They are also required to maintain and disclose a current list of crypto-tokens assessed as suitable, continuously monitor those assessments and submit a Crypto Token Information Return on a monthly basis. Fiat crypto-tokens remain subject to DFSA assess - ment. The updated framework increases flexibility for regulated firms while placing greater emphasis on governance, documentation, investor protection and ongoing monitoring of crypto-token exposure. From a tax perspective, the UAE does not provide a separate tax regime for digital assets. Instead, their treatment follows the general principles of the UAE Corporate Tax Law. The growing integration of digital assets into wealth planning is also evident in the real estate sector. Cer - tain real estate developers and brokers allow property purchases using cryptocurrencies. In such transac - tions, the buyer and seller first determine the type of digital asset for payment and establish its equivalent value in UAE dirhams. The settlement process is usually arranged through an authorised intermedi - ary, converting the digital asset into fiat currency and performing the required verification procedures. Once the transaction has satisfied the applicable regulatory (including the Dubai Land Department (DLD) and the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA)) and com - pliance requirements, the property is transferred and recorded through the standard registration framework. Development of the digital dirham At the same time, the UAE is expanding the digital asset ecosystem beyond traditional cryptocurrencies. Another significant development is the ongoing imple - mentation of the digital dirham, the central bank digital currency (CBDC). The introduction of the digital dir - ham reflects the UAE’s broader strategy of improving financial infrastructure and supporting the adoption of digital financial technologies. Development of the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework The UAE has committed to implementing the OECD’s Common Reporting Standard (CRS 2.0) from 1 Janu - ary 2027, aligning its implementation with the OECD’s
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