While Qatar has not opened up to the crypto scene, its financial center is opening up to digital assets enabling them to tokenize asset classes to facilitate the needs of qualified investors with its digital assets framework. Henk Jan Hoogendoorn, Chief Financial Sector Officer, at Qatar Financial Center Authority speaking to Lara on the Block, stated, “ We are developing our digital assets framework to allow for public tokenization of assets, including securities, bonds, and real-estate.” He emphasizes that they will not go into crypto, NFTs (Non Fungible Tokens) or commodities at this time. Hoogendoorn had discussed digitization in the financial sector in Qatar as well as their digital assets project and the new Fintech strategy of QCB (Qatar Central Bank) during a fireside chat on Digitizing the Financial Sector in Qatar, moderated by Robert Wigley OStJ, BSc, Hon DBA. Furthermore, Aleksander Biesaga, Acting Project Manager, Roland Berger in a recent LinkedIn post noted,

  For the first time ever Abu Dhabi Finance week organized by ADGM in association with Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) will be holding Crypto Abu Dhabi on November 16 th 2022. Abu Dhabi Finance Week (ADFW)’, is set to run between 14th November 2022 and 18th November 2022. As per the event synopsis, Crypto Abu Dhabi in partnership with Roland Berger, will explore the next era of Digital Assets as the technologies experience the growing pains involved with shaping true innovation. The agenda of the conference will focus on the underlying blockchain and cryptography technologies that drive the innovation, and why financial products are served by their application. The event will also focus on how major global financial institutions are now developing digital asset strategies, and how the tokenization of private market assets will open up a new multi-trillion dollar democratized opportunity for investors globally, and why regulation is on the horizon. Some re

    UAE Crypto Oasis ecosystem published its first annual report entitled the “Crypto Ecosystem in the UAE” with the collaboration of Roland Berger. The report highlighted the growth that the UAE has witnessed in its blockchain crypto ecosystem which has resulted in the employment of 7000 people across 1400 blockchain crypto entities currently operating in the country. As per the report the number of blockchain crypto organizations is more than 1400 in total where 66 percent are native organizations and 34 percent are non-native. Saqr Ereiqat, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Crypto Oasis Sentio, the investment arm of Crypto Oasis, told LaraontheBlock, “Based on the information we have the blockchain crypto ecosystem in UAE has employed approximately 7000 people.” These 1,400 plus ventures are leveraging distributed ledger technologies and related technologies to build and provide new value propositions with Blockchain innovation. Interestingly the report confirms that the UAE

News spread in May 2022 that Central African President Faustin Archange Touadera was travelling to the UAE to oversee the launch the crypto mining company. This came after Central Africa affirmed Bitcoin as a legal tender in the country. The website African Intelligence was the news platform that mentioned the President’s visit to UAE on May 12 th 2022. LeMonde News platform stated that due to lack of infrastructure in Central African state, the mining company for Bitcoin would be located in Dubai.   Nothing else was reported on this, and no official comments were made on this by UAE officials.  This comes at a time when VARA (Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority) in Dubai UAE, stated that it would be regulating crypto mining operations. Already a sovereign wealth fund in Abu Dhabi is building one of the world’s biggest crypto mining farms with strategic advisors, Roland Berger.  In addition US Crusoe Energy, which mines Bitcoin using wasted natural gas expanded into the Middle

  Even before the UAE and specifically Dubai release their crypto mining regulations, companies have already started operating in the country. Recently 2Bminer, crypto mining hosting center with operations in the UAE, Czech Republic, and USA, signed a partnership agreement with UAE Seed Group, a company of the Private office of Sheikh Saeed Bin Ahmed Al Maktoum. The announcement and the fact that 2Bminer is present in the UAE is not surprising. Prior to this, UAE-based Phoenix Technology Consultants signed a $650 million order for crypto mining rigs as part of its expansion plans in UAE and MENA region, while a UAE Sovereign wealth Fund is building one of the biggest crypto mining farms in the region under the strategic guidance of Roland Berger. It would seem that 2BMiner is espousing its ecofriendly nature. As per 2Bminer website, their crypto mining machines mainly use hydro, wind and solar power. Sustainability is something that the UAE government is keen on. The company offer

It is big news when a leading global strategy and management consultancy firm like Roland Berger partners with UAE Crypto Oasis, a Middle East focused Blockchain Ecosystem supported by initiators of Crypto Valley Switzerland. As per the announcement, Roland Berger will bring forward its talents and resources to propel the Blockchain ecosystem to new heights in the MENA region and globally. Roland Berger was one of the first to herald in a crypto economy advisory practice out of the UAE. The partnership comes at a time when UAE Crypto Oasis is now targeting 1500 Blockchain crypto entities to enter the UAE after UAE reached the target of 1000 blockchain and crypto entities before the end of 2022. Roland Berger has been working with several clients in the region. They are strategic advisors to the biggest blockchain crypto projects in the region including the largest Bitcoin mining facility in MENA as well as the set-up of a tokenized green asset exchange. The combination of bot