UAE Authorities Deny Issuance of Golden Visas for Toncoin Investors

The authorities of the UAE have officially denied the claims regarding the issuance of «golden visas» to cryptocurrency investors in digital currencies. This joint statement was released by the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship (ICP), the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA), and the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA).

This denial was in response to an announcement by The Open Network Foundation, which introduced a program allowing individuals to obtain a 10-year UAE «golden visa.» For participation, investors were invited to stake Toncoin (TON) worth $100,000 and pay a fee of $35,000.

Regulators emphasized that «golden visas» are awarded based on clearly defined criteria. They are accessible to real estate investors, entrepreneurs, scientists, talented students, and other categories that do not involve digital assets.

VARA specifically pointed out that TON lacks a license and is not regulated by their authority.

Peravel, a partner in the program, insists on its legitimacy. According to the company’s CEO, Ehsan Sattari, the method fully complies with the requirements set by the authorities, and official announcements are anticipated through TON channels.

The TON Foundation’s program is said to involve locking tokens for three years, with an annual yield of approximately 3-4%. Organizers promised visa approval within seven weeks.

The announcement was also shared by Telegram CEO Pavel Durov.

In addition, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao reacted to the news, stating that if this program is a legitimate partnership, the exchange would seek to launch a similar initiative for BNB.

In May, Durov announced that Telegram and Elon Musk’s AI startup xAI had established a year-long partnership to promote the Grok chatbot among messenger users and integrate it «into all applications.» However, the billionaire noted that the agreement was not finalized.