In March 12022, the market capitalization of gold-backed tokens exceeded $1 billion for the first time. As gold-backed tokens continue to increase in popularity, the UAE appears to be becoming a hotbed for the physical gold investment alternative. Startups from the region and globally are setting up in the country as gold-backed tokens witness a growth surpassing that of cryptocurrencies. The market cap of gold-backed tokens has exceeded $1 billion — a far cry from $100 million in 2020. A gold-backed cryptocurrency is a digital currency that is backed by physical gold. The currency’s value is based on the current market value of gold and can be used for transactions like any other cryptocurrency. Bullion gold experts estimate that 20 to 40 percent of the $11 trillion global gold market passes through Dubai every year. These findings can be attributed to entities embracing gold tokenization and commodity token exchanges. Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Chairman and CEO of Dubai’s Dubai M

Alex Tapscott, author of Digital Asset Revolution and co-founder of the Blockchain Research Institute, hails Web3 and blockchain start-up, PermianChain for bringing the digital asset revolution to the natural resource sectors. Chapter 7 is dedicated to how blockchain creates value through natural asset tokens (NATs), mainly in oil and natural gas. Mohamed El-Masri, Founder and CEO of PermianChain and CEO of Brox Equity, explains the mechanics behind energy tokenization within a blockchain-enabled ecosystem.  El-Masri discusses how utilization of blockchain is changing the way exploration and production companies raise capital as well as how investors and consumers participate in a digital energy market with surplus or shortage.  PermianChain’s solution is a digital platform combining a blockchain, decentralized cloud storage and Web3 compatible features that supports two forms of digital economics, one being a security token and the other being a utility token. Chapter 7 of Digital Ass

  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 based La Boulangerie, a French bakery whose goal is to bring quality standards that will revolutionize the food delivery industry, is raising capital for its venture through Blockchain enabled P2P Security token investment platform STOKR. STOKR based in Luxumborg, is regulated under EU MiFID II law. The issuance of securities is governed by EU regulations and is available in a number of European countries. Both individuals and legal entities can invest on STOKR. Investors with just 100 USD can invest in La Boulangerie, as the token price is 1 USD, but a minimum investment of 100 USD is required. Investors can invest using Euro, USDT (ERC20), Bitcoin USDT liquid and other cryptocurrencies. As per Stokr website , the bakery will initially set up shop in the city of Dubai in the UAE but plans to expand across the UAE and GCC region. The food and beverage market in the UAE, particularly in Dubai, is already sizable with more than 11,000 businesses. Prominent established player

  In an interview with CNBC Al Arabia, Yazeed Saleh Aldemaigi Deputy, Strategy & International Affairs, at Saudi Capital Market Authority (CMA) announced that regulations for Security Token offerings (STO) will be out before the end of 2022 in Saudi Arabia. As per the interview, application for STO offerings will be available on the CMA digital platform by end of 2022. He added that the Fintech Lab at CMA has been working on finding the most appropriate environments for FinTech startups. The STO regulations that will come out at the end of 2022 will help to attract foreign investment firms interested in the FinTech domain in KSA as well as support local companies. The Fintech Lab from CMA was launched in 2017.   It aimed to provide a regulatory framework that is conducive for the innovation of Financial Technology (FinTech) in the capital market within the Kingdom. One of the business models under the Fintech Lab was related to use of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) to

  Singaporean, Stratez Capital with offices in UAE, a boutique firm that focuses on assisting enterprises who are planning to elevate to the next phase of growth, has partnered with NewTek Holdings to develop tokenized commodity trading and real-estate projects on the Blockchain. As per the press release , the Middle East has been identified by NewTek as a priority market, and the company is initially looking to focus on major real estate projects in Dubai.  “This is an exciting partnership, and in line with the investment and strategy objectives of the company, and we feel we can add huge value with our expertise and investments. NewTek brings real asset value and a clear vision in one of the fastest growing areas where real world assets combine with future Web3 and blockchain technology,” said Vik Pillai, Managing Partner at Singapore-based Stratez, announcing the agreement today. Qurashi, CEO of London-based NewTek, said: “I’ve been very impressed by the depth and variety that Strat

  ChainTech Labs, the first Reward Bearing tokens marketplace, with custom smart contracts and vaulting technologies that will enable startups and SMEs to get funded utilizing a novel token issuing framework, has launched out of UAE specifically out of DIFC (Dubai International Financial Center). On its twitter page it states that it is the first DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization) out DIFC in UAE. As per their website, ChainTech builds next generation Dapps for government agencies, global conglomerates and companies operating in over 40 different industries. The company also manages NFT communities. They state that the “total token market cap under their command reached 100,000,000 USD in June 2022. They have developed BAPESCLAN which is a metavestor NFT DAO with a total market cap of 60,000,000. Minting officially started today. They also have developed BLOODLINES™, the first decentralized animated series, created and owned by its holders, that bridges the gap between

The Executive President of the Central Bank of Oman, Mr. Tahir Salim Al Amri, commented during the 7t Edition of the new Age Banking Summit on the topic of CBDCs (Central Bank Digital Currencies) As per a tweet from Oman News Agency stated, “The Central Bank of Oman is working to issue its own CBDC. Many central banks are studying the possibility of issuing their own CBDCs and the Central Bank of Oman is committed to supporting innovation in the financial sector." He also mentioned that work was underway to open banking API services and overcoming challenges that face the digitization sector, and stressed the importance of cyber security. In April 2022, Oman Capital Market Authority announced that it would incorporate real estate tokenization within its virtual assets regulation as well as license crypto exchanges. The Oman virtual asset regulation will be finalized by Q3 of 2022. Kemal Rizadi, Advisor at the Oman Capital Market Authority made these comments during the