Kraken Parent Wins Dubai Approval for Dirham Trading Rollout

Payward, the parent company of Kraken, received full approval from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) to expand crypto services in the United Arab Emirates, clearing the final regulatory step for a dirham-based trading rollout.

Kraken clients in the UAE will be able to trade spot and margin products in UAE dirham-denominated pairs and make direct deposits and withdrawals when the service launches. Payward is targeting a rollout in the coming weeks.

VARA issued Payward FZCO a virtual asset service provider license on Oct. 6. The license permits management and investment services as well as broker-dealer activities, and allows the entity to serve retail, professional and institutional investors.

The approval builds on preliminary authorization granted in May and expands Kraken’s regulated presence in the UAE’s growing digital asset market.