In an exciting announcement made on July 25, it was confirmed that the Abu Dhabi Global Market Financial Services Regulatory Authority has granted its Financial Services Permission for cryptocurrency firm Rain.
The firm has been given the go-ahead to offer brokerage and custody services to residents in the UAE. Rain stated that this regulatory approval will allow specific UAE-based institutional and retail users to “buy, sell, trade, and store virtual assets” through the platform. Rain CEO, Joseph Dallago, revealed that the trading firm has also joined forces with a local bank to help facilitate these services.
A Long-term Effort to Receive Regulatory Approval
Joseph Dallago expressed that receiving this permission was the result of a 5-year effort, as Rain was among the first exchanges to inquire about licensure back in 2018. This was when the ADGM released their virtual asset framework. “This is a 5 year effort, as we were one of the first exchanges to enquire about licensure back in 2018, when the ADGM released their virtual asset framework,” said Dallago.
Binance’s Previous Approval in Abu Dhabi
The approval of Rain follows on the heels of a similar regulatory permission that was given to crypto exchange Binance in November 2022. Amid a major crypto market crash and the collapse of several major firms including FTX, Binance was granted in-principle approval from the financial watchdog.
Rain and Binance’s Presence in the Middle East
Rain, with its headquarters in Bahrain, primarily offers crypto services across the Middle East and Turkey. With the Abu Dhabi Global Market Financial Services Regulatory Authority issuing approvals to both Rain and Binance, these companies are making their presence felt in the region. However, there have been some hiccups, with Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority issuing notices to executives of digital asset platform Open Exchange in May and suspending BitOasis’ license in July. Despite these challenges, Abu Dhabi is rapidly emerging as a cryptocurrency-friendly environment.
