Written by Christina Comben⁠, Staff Editor. Reviewed by Bryan O’Shea⁠, Staff Editor.

Written by Christina Comben⁠, Staff Editor.

Reviewed by Bryan O’Shea⁠, Staff Editor.

Crypto.com receives UAE license for Dubai government crypto payments

Latest NewsPublishedMay 11, 2026

Crypto.com says a new UAE Stored Value Facilities license will let residents pay Dubai government fees in crypto, as the company doubles down on regulated expansion in the Middle East and beyond.

Update (May 11, 2026, at 13:17 UTC): This article has been updated to include responses from Mohammed Al Hakim, president and general manager for the UAE at Crypto.com.

Crypto.com has received a Stored Value Facilities license from the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates, allowing residents to pay Dubai government fees using cryptocurrencies via its platform, the company stated Monday.

The company says the license allows users to fund payments in digital assets while settlements are made in UAE dirhams or in dirham-backed stablecoins approved by the central bank under the SVF framework.

Mohammed Al Hakim, president and general manager for the UAE at Crypto.com, told Cointelegraph that the approval followed a comprehensive supervisory and operational readiness assessment by the Central Bank of the UAE, including reviews of governance frameworks, anti-money laundering (AML) and counter financing of terrorism (CFT) controls, cybersecurity standards, transaction monitoring systems, safeguarding arrangements, and operational resilience.

The approval allows Crypto.com to activate its partnership with Dubai’s Department of Finance, giving the exchange access to provide digital asset payment services for government fees through its platform under Dubai’s cashless payments strategy.

The company stated the license could also support future payment integrations with Emirates Airlines and Dubai Duty Free, though those services remain subject to further approvals from the UAE central bank.

Crypto.com secures SVF license. Source: Crypto.com

The SVF authorization applies to its local Dubai entity, Foris DAX Middle East FZE, which trades as Crypto.com. Al Hakim told Cointelegraph that Crypto.com operates under two distinct but complementary regulatory frameworks in the UAE: VARA’s Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) regime, which governs virtual asset activities such as trading and exchange services, and the Central Bank’s SVF framework, which regulates payment infrastructure and stored value services connected to the domestic financial system.

Related: Crypto.com gets into prediction markets through High Roller tie-up

Crypto.com expands UAE regulatory and payments push

The new authorization adds another layer to Crypto.com’s regulatory footprint in the UAE, where it already holds a Virtual Asset Service Provider license from VARA and promotes its platform as an institutional-grade, compliance-focused venue for digital assets.

Outside the UAE, the company has been building a similar regulated profile, including securing licensing to operate under the European Union’s Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regime and obtaining conditional approval from the United States Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for a national trust bank charter that would allow it to act as a qualified digital asset custodian.

At the same time, Crypto.com is expanding into event-based derivatives and prediction markets through a regulated US affiliate, part of a broader strategy to combine tighter regulatory oversight with a growing range of trading and payments products around cryptocurrencies.

Al Hakim added that the SVF approval positions Crypto.com to serve as a regulated bridge between virtual assets and traditional payment infrastructure in the UAE, enabling utilize cases such as government fee payments and merchant settlement within a unified regulatory framework.

Magazine: Guide to the top and emerging global crypto hubs — Mid-2026

Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.

• UAE
• Crypto.com
• Cryptocurrency Exchange
• Adoption
• Cryptocurrencies
• Stablecoin
• Regulation

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