Rakbank and Kraken to launch UAE’s first AED-denominated virtual asset trading platform

Rakbank will be the first UAE bank to enable Kraken to provide its clients with transparent, efficient, dirham-based digital asset trading, as the UAE works to accomplish its aim of becoming a worldwide virtual asset centre. Residents will be able to fund their crypto accounts using local transfers from any bank in the nation.

Currently, crypto investors in the UAE must use foreign correspondents to finance their trading, according to Rakbank, incurring “expensive foreign currency expenses and fees, experiencing long lead times, and subject to overseas-jurisdiction asset governance.” The partnership will allow UAE residents to fund their account faster within the country’s jurisdiction, the bank said.

Rakbank and Kraken MENA (Kraken), one of the world’s leading digital asset exchanges, announced today that UAE citizens will soon be able to trade virtual assets in AED using their local bank account, in keeping with their commitment to “Simply Better” banking and innovation.

Rakbank, as authorised by the UAE Central Bank, will allow Kraken, which is licenced by Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), to have its UAE-based clients fill their crypto account using local fund transfers from any bank in the UAE. In the Abu Dhabi Worldwide Market, Kraken was the first global exchange to get a complete licence to operate a regulated virtual asset exchange platform (ADGM).

Raheel Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer of Rakbank said, “We are proud to be the first UAE bank to enable Kraken, so that it can offer this solution to its UAE-resident crypto investors. This is another step towards our goal of making banking simpler and easier through innovation. The UAE is emerging as a global hub for the crypto and virtual assets industry. With this breakthrough solution, Kraken’s UAE-based investors will be able to transact in virtual assets transparently and efficiently through an ADGM-regulated crypto exchange that has the ability to convert between AED and crypto through UAE Central Bank-regulated banking channels.”