Payward, Kraken's Parent Company, Receives Full VARA Approval to Launch in UAE
Payward, the parent company of Kraken, is preparing to launch services in the UAE, including Dirham trading, staking, and xStocks, after receiving full market approval from the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA).
The full approval is the final stage of VARA's licensing process, allowing Payward to operate as a regulated virtual asset service provider for retail, professional, and institutional investors; it had previously received preliminary approval in May and can now begin regulated activities.
Upon launch, UAE customers will be able to conduct spot and margin trading with AED-denominated trading pairs and deposit and withdraw directly in Dirhams; it will also offer on-chain staking, tokenized stocks via xStocks, and Krak crypto transfers, with institutional clients gaining access to OTC spot trading and Kraken Prime services.
Customers will connect to Kraken's global order book, covering deep liquidity across European, U.S., and Asia-Pacific markets; additional products, including crypto derivatives and more yield opportunities, are expected to launch later in 2026 and 2027, pending further regulatory approval.
Payward co-CEO Arjun Sethi previously stated that Dubai established rules for this asset class when it was not recognized in most jurisdictions, attracting real liquidity and institutional capital; local regulatory entities provide customers with the same order book and balance sheet as other markets.
Market Mechanism: Local regulatory approval enables global exchanges to access UAE customer funds and trading needs through regulated subsidiaries, with Dirham channels reducing cross-border friction; institutional and retail capital flows to platforms with local compliance and global liquidity, benefiting Payward and Kraken from regional expansion, while local traditional channels may face competitive pressure.
Source: Public Information
ABAB AI Insight
As the parent company of Kraken, Payward has long expanded its business through global licensing, having previously obtained licenses in multiple jurisdictions and operating products like NinjaTrader, xStocks, and CF Benchmarks; Arjun Sethi, as co-CEO, promotes a regulatory clarity market strategy, emphasizing the combination of local oversight and a global order book.
On the capital pathway, the company extends existing global liquidity and products (spot, margin, staking, tokenized stocks) to UAE customers by obtaining full VARA approval, supporting AED deposits and local entity operations; the motivation is to leverage Dubai's early regulatory framework to attract regional institutional and retail funds while reserving space for subsequent products like derivatives.
Similar cases include other global exchanges accessing markets in Singapore, Hong Kong, or the UAE through local licenses, and tokenized stock platforms providing equity exposure through compliant channels; currently, crypto exchanges are in an expansion phase to establish local entities in clearly regulated jurisdictions to serve regional customers.
Essentially, this is a market entry driven by regulatory changes. VARA's full approval connects global liquidity platforms to local regulated pathways, allowing Dirham funds to enter crypto and tokenized asset trading directly; local oversight reduces compliance friction while linking regional demand to the global order book, changing the flow of funds from offshore channels to regulated entities.
ABAB News · Cognitive Laws
Local regulatory approval is a prerequisite for global platforms to access regional funds
Clear rules attract liquidity, while ambiguous rules raise offshore costs
Product expansion follows licensing, rather than preceding regulatory establishment