Abu Dhabi is becoming a popular destination for crypto companies seeking eager investors and friendlier regulators, at a time when major markets like the US are experiencing an absence of both.
Companies like Copper Technologies Ltd., Paxos Trust Co. and eToro Group Ltd. have turned to Abu Dhabi as a destination for global expansion in recent weeks, securing licenses or establishing parts of their crypto businesses inside the emirate’s international economic zone, known as the Abu Dhabi Global Market. Shares in Phoenix Group Plc, a cryptocurrency mining hardware company, have jumped 47% since their debut on public markets in Abu Dhabi on Dec. 5.
Executives cite a growing network of partners and developing government policy as advantages to basing themselves in the city, in addition to deep-pocketed investors. While neighboring Dubai became a popular choice when it established a crypto-specific watchdog called the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, or VARA, in March last year, officials in Abu Dhabi have been making a concerted play for the young industry’s attention, executives said.
“The buy-in generally for blockchain-based financial markets as the future for Abu Dhabi is very high,” said Copper Chief Executive Officer Dmitry Tokarev in an interview. ADGM’s Financial Services Regulatory Authority, the zone’s finance regulator, has listed support for innovation in digital assets as part of its 2024 business plan, Tokarev added.
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