Crypto Exchange Rain Will Target UAE Asset Managers After Obtaining License

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DUBAI, July 25 (Reuters) – Middle Eastern crypto exchange Rain said on Tuesday that its Abu Dhabi unit has been granted a license to operate a virtual asset brokerage and custody service for clients in the United Arab Emirates.

Bahrain-based Coinbase-backed Rain said its Abu Dhabi Financial Free Zone-based entity Global Market will now offer institutional and select retail customers in the UAE the ability to buy, sell and store virtual assets.

Rain will also be able to open a bank account in the United Arab Emirates and allow customers in the country to fund their own accounts when using the local payment network, co-founder Yehia Badawy said in an interview on Tuesday.

Local asset managers have been hesitant to work with crypto firms without a national license, he continued, adding that they will now feel more comfortable once regulatory approval is obtained.

“We can capture more demand from institutional investors using this license,” he said.

Rain was founded in 2017 by Badawy and three others, and backed by Silicon Valley venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins and Coinbase Ventures.

It raised $110 million last year in a Series B funding round that valued the company at $500 million. Rain, which has registered units in Bahrain and Turkey, said it would use proceeds from regional expansion.

The UAE is trying to attract some of the biggest crypto companies in the world. It has been quick to enable payments through cryptocurrencies in areas such as real estate and tuition, which has boosted adoption rates and transaction volumes.

He has also attempted to develop virtual asset regulation to attract new forms of business as economic competition intensifies in the Gulf region.

The world’s largest exchange, Binance, is based in the country. Another exchange, Gemini, should operate there soon.

Reporting by Hadeel Al Sayegh; Editing by Emma Rumney

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