Tether и Circle укрепляют свои позиции на финансовом рынке ОАЭ, получая лицензии для масштабирования операций Headline: Tether and Circle Strengthen Their Position in the UAE Financial Market by Acquiring Licenses for Scaling Operations

The companies Tether and Circle have announced that they received authorization from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM).

Tether has reported that its stablecoin, USDT, has been recognized as an «Accepted Fiat-Referenced Token» (AFRT). This new classification extends to the asset across the networks of Aptos, Celo, Cosmos, Kaia, NEAR, Polkadot, Tezos, TON, and TRON.

Previously, the regulator had approved USDT on Ethereum, Solana, and Avalanche. Now, the ADGM-licensed institutions are permitted to engage in transactions with the «stablecoin» across almost all supported blockchains.

CEO Paolo Ardoino referred to this development as a pivotal move to bolster Abu Dhabi’s position as a global financial hub.

Circle has secured a Financial Services Provider (FSP) license, which allows the firm to operate as a money transfer operator.

Simultaneously, the USDC issuing platform appointed Dr. Said Jafar as Managing Director for the Middle East and Africa. Previously, he served as Senior Vice President at Visa for the Gulf region. Jafar will focus on building partnerships with local banks and implementing payment solutions.

On December 8, Binance also announced that it had received a license in this jurisdiction.

The exchange’s Co-CEO, Richard Teng, characterized the event as a significant milestone.

«We have become the first global exchange to achieve comprehensive approval from the FSRA. Our global operations and liquidity are now under full end-to-end oversight,» he stated.

According to Teng, obtaining the license affirms the solidity of the business foundation and the commitment to creating the most transparent platform. He added that this decision reinforces the dedication to «responsible innovation» and the mission to attract a billion users into the industry.

The expansion into the Middle East is occurring amidst a shifting market balance in Europe. According to a Decta report, Circle (EURC) is currently the primary contributor to the market capitalization growth in the euro-stablecoin segment, while Tether’s asset share has diminished.

As a reminder, in August, Arkham analysts reported that the United Arab Emirates holds approximately 6,300 BTC.