The UAE has been proudly expanding and progressing its footprint in the blockchain sector with a profound passion for Web3 and crypto adoption. Besides its real estate, business, and tourist attractions, crypto has significantly shaped the country’s wealth. What makes the UAE particularly attractive to crypto investors is its “stable regulatory framework”, noted Belal Jassoma, Director of Ecosystems at Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC), in an interview with Altcoin Desk during Crypto Expo 2025.
“The crypto compass has always pointed forward, and that’s evident also in the fact that Dubai created a dedicated regulator — VARA”, added Belal Jassoma.
Unlike many jurisdictions still struggling with policy uncertainty, the UAE is proud to have the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), which supports crypto companies with structured regulations. Belal Jassoma also highlighted the role of VARA in accelerating the onboarding of Web3 and crypto companies to DMCC. He added that the growing number of crypto events in Dubai further enhances DMCC’s exposure in creating more opportunities to attract new businesses.
Speaking about DMCC’s Crypto Centre, which was launched in 2021 and now hosts over 650 businesses, Belal indicated a bullish signal on onboarding more companies in the future. DMCC is home to 25,000 businesses, including crypto companies.
When asked about the impact of AI on the job market, he noted that DMCC is home to nearly 90 AI companies, and while many existing jobs may be replaced, there would be more job opportunities as prompt engineers, AI coders, robotic engineers, and more.
In a formal speech at the event, the DMCC executive emphasized how fast Web3 adoption has exponentially grown in the country, citing a few examples. Dubai customs launched a blockchain-based supply chain platform as part of its smart city effort, Ajman Police provides uses metaverse to provide services to customers, and the Roads and Transport Authority is currently creating a vehicle lifecycle management system, deploying blockchain technology.
What’s more, Dubai will soon use Cardano blockchain technology for criminal investigations, and the UAE telecom company Du has started accepting payments through cryptocurrency.
