# Kraken Secures Dubai Approval for Local-Currency Crypto Trading

By Riza Dagoc

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/regulation/30987
Published: 2026-10-13T09:47:40.000Z
Updated: 2026-10-13T09:47:40.000Z
Section: Regulation

> The exchange can fund accounts in dirhams, offer AED trading pairs and provide on-chain staking as it expands in the Middle East.

Kraken received full market approval from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), clearing the exchange to operate in the city and expand its regulated presence in the Middle East.

The approval allows Kraken users in Dubai to fund accounts in United Arab Emirates dirhams and trade cryptocurrency pairs denominated in AED. The exchange will also offer on-chain staking.

The move gives Kraken a local-currency offering in Dubai.

VARA oversees virtual-asset activity in Dubai and has established a regulatory framework for exchanges operating in the market.

The exchange’s local rollout will add another regulated venue for digital-asset trading in the emirate.