The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has passed a new law that governs virtual assets, setting up the country’s initial regulatory regime for the cryptocurrency space at the federal level.
Before the federal-level regulation, the UAE already
The crypto lawyer also highlighted that the law has also set up minimum requirements for VASPs. According to Heaver, all VASPs are required to comply with the legislation in force on combating money laundering crimes, the financing of terrorism and the financing of unlawful organizations. In addition, all legal entities that fall into the VASP category will have three months to adapt and comply with the new law.
Despite establishing a new law dedicated to protecting consumers, Heaver believes that preventing FTX-like entities from attempting to commit fraud would be challenging. Dubai’s VARA still previously gave FTX approvals before revoking it in November. She noted:
“From the evidence that emerged, FTX is a case of serious fraud of a level that will look Madoff look like an angel. Unfortunately, no levels of laws can protect us from people wanting to commit crimes intentionally.“
Overall, the lawyer believes that this new development is good for founders, investors and consumers within the UAE and that regulatory clarity gives the country the right ingredients to be the “Web3 capital of the world.”
