Bitpanda secures VARA approval, setting the stage for its UAE expansion into the Middle East’s thriving digital asset market.
Bitpanda has advanced its worldwide development strategy and gained in-principle clearance from Dubai’s VARA, opening the door for its entry into the expanding cryptocurrency sector in the United Arab Emirates.
The Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) has granted Bitpanda, a European digital asset platform, an in-principle license as it prepares to enter the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
In line with its plan to expand outside of Europe, where it is now a regulated supplier of digital assets, the regulatory approval paves the way for Bitpanda to establish its position in the Middle East.
With innovation-focused legislation, the UAE—particularly Dubai—has become a major global center for digital banking, drawing in bitcoin companies.
Bitpanda CEO and co-founder Eric Demut called Dubai the company’s “strategic launchpad for international expansion.”
Adherence to regulations
Given VARA’s in-principle approval, Bitpanda may shortly be granted an operating license in the United Arab Emirates and is expected to comply with all applicable regulations and compliance standards.
Even though the notification demonstrates that the company has complied with necessary compliance standards, it still suggests that further requirements must be met before it can be fully approved.
These can involve setting up a local office in the United Arab Emirates, integrating compliance infrastructure that complies with the framework governed by VARA, and onboarding regional management personnel.
Geopolitical growth with a strategic focus
Bitpanda’s strategic choice of the United Arab Emirates for its expansion beyond its European operations was greatly influenced by Dubai’s posture as a new global hub for digital finance.
The country’s entry into the Dubai market demonstrates the city’s dedication to supporting cryptocurrency innovation using programs such as the DMCC Crypto Centre.
In addition to establishing a functional regional headquarters in Dubai, the company also hopes to form alliances with pertinent financial players.
Societe Generale Establishes Collaboration
Bitpanda teamed up with Societe Generale, a multinational financial conglomerate, in September to support the development of cryptocurrencies and stablecoins as essential elements of global finance.
Through the agreement, Bitpanda will collaborate with Societe Generale-Forge, the conglomerate’s blockchain business, to promote the widespread use of EUR CoinVertible (EURCV), its stablecoin priced in euros.
Societe Generale-FORGE CEO Jean-Mark Stenger said that the collaboration was essential to establishing stablecoins as “a core component of the global financial system.”