The UAE is gradually developing into a hotspot for blockchain and cryptocurrency adoption. Its Blockchain Strategy aims to position Dubai as a leader in this global technology. The governmental organizations, financial institutions, and eminent investors could potentially contribute capital as well as their knowledge and expertise to the crypto verse.

The Central Bank of UAE recently announced new regulations for digital wallets and payment services and according to H.E. Abdulhamid M. Saeed Alahmadi, Governor of the Central Bank of the UAE, these regulations are an important milestone in the continued development of a robust regulatory framework for stored value facilities and the digital payments industry as a whole.

The Central Bank of UAE defines:

• Crypto assets as cryptographically secured digital representations of value or contractual rights that use a form  of  distributed ledger technology and can be transferred, stored or traded electronically.
• Digital wallets as a facility which has the value stored on a network-based account and can be accessed through the internet, a computer network or mobile network.
• Virtual assets as the inclusion of digital tokens, digital currencies, utility tokens or asset-backed tokens) and any other virtual commodities, crypto assets and other assets of essentially the same nature.

So, what does this mean for crypto currency holders or digital currency holders? It means that users can now actually store these digital currencies in their own digital wallets or with custodians. It also means that crypto or digital currencies holders can use these digital currencies to make payments, P2P lending, remittances and other forms.

To give you a brief on the crypto wallets; a crypto wallet is simply a secure “window” into the blockchain, so you can view your records and transactions. Similarly, your tokens and transactions are saved on a blockchain, which is distributed across a vast network. So, it’s always there, even if you lose your wallet. You just won't be able to access or do anything with the tokens without your wallet.

Think of it like email, where your wallet is your login and password, but you're not actually storing the emails yourself, you're simply accessing them.

In the UAE, Bitex offers software wallets and a secure trading platform for Bitcoin, BitcoinCash, Ethereum and Litecoin. Similarly, BitOasis is another option for UAE cryptocurrency traders.

Monark Modi, CEO of Bitex believes that the UAE government has demonstrated progressive leadership with its Blockchain Strategy 2021, which has laid the groundwork for digital assets becoming more accessible in the Gulf state (Source: Trade Arabia).

Surely, with regulations coming into force in the UAE, we believe that a significant number of potential investors curious to start transacting in digital assets, would actually break the ice and hit the ground running soon..