Kraken Secures VARA License for Regulated Dubai Operations
In brief
- Payward secured preliminary broker-dealer and investment management authorization from VARA
- Kraken offers spot, margin, OTC trading, staking, and Kraken Prime to UAE clients
- UAE traders access Kraken's global order books across Europe, US, and Asia-Pacific
- Payward plans to expand Dubai operations to include derivatives and lending products
Dubai's Crypto Framework Attracts Major Operators
Dubai established VARA in 2022 to regulate digital asset businesses, and the jurisdiction has since become a hub for institutional crypto activity. The authority has licensed major exchanges including Binance, Crypto.com, and OKX, as well as Ripple, which gained approval for its RLUSD stablecoin earlier this year. Animoca Brands also secured a license as the authority tightened oversight measures.
VARA has shown it enforces its rulebook. The authority ordered KuCoin in March to cease services to Dubai residents for operating without proper authorization, signaling that compliance isn't optional.
Services and Expansion Plans
The authorization permits Kraken to offer virtual asset services to both retail and professional investors in Dubai. The exchange will provide UAE clients with spot and margin trading, over-the-counter services, staking, crypto transfers, and access to Kraken Prime.
A key advantage: UAE traders will connect to Kraken's global order books across Europe, the United States, and Asia-Pacific markets. Customers can fund accounts and make withdrawals in dirhams through Payward FZCO, the locally regulated subsidiary.
Growth doesn't stop here. The company plans to expand its Dubai offering to include derivatives, lending, and new investment products for qualified clients.
Broader Context
The VARA approval comes as Kraken pursues multiple regulatory pathways. Kraken filed last November for a still-pending U.S. IPO after raising $800 million in fresh funding at a $20 billion valuation. Payward also recently filed for a national trust bank charter from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
"Dubai wrote a rulebook for crypto before most jurisdictions even acknowledged the asset class. That clarity is why real liquidity and institutional capital now sit in the UAE. Operating under VARA puts Kraken inside that perimeter, serving clients through a local, supervised entity rather than from offshore." — Arjun Sethi, Payward and Kraken Co-CEO