Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) has issued the Minimal Viable Product (MVP) license to Binance, the leading global blockchain services provider, following the issuance of its provisional license in March 2022.
The MVP license means that Binance can offer an approved range of virtual asset-related services to suitably qualified retail and institutional investors in Dubai within its internationally benchmarked legislative framework for virtual asset service providers (VASPs).
Binance, which is dedicated to strong investor and market protection policies, will cater to a clientele approved by VARA who can now benefit from the local banking channels unlocked by this first-of-its-kind regulatory license. Users will benefit from increased levels of consumer protection by trading on a regulated platform under the supervision of VARA in Dubai.
With the MVP license, Binance can open a client money account with a domestic bank and provide the following services to qualified customers;
Virtual asset exchange services
Conversion between virtual assets and fiat currencies
Transfer of virtual assets
Custody and management of virtual assets
Virtual token offering and trading services
Virtual assets payments and remittance services.
Helal Saeed Almarri Chairman – VARA
“We are pleased to have Binance licensed to operate within the VARA MVP Program. The VARA regime aims to strike an effective balance between value creation and risk mitigation, enabling open market innovation while assuring protection for the economically vulnerable. The MVP Phase, is designed for select global players across the value chain, that are committed to responsible industry participation and VARA looks forward to Binance being an active contributor, reinforcing Dubai’s commitment towards creating a next-gen secure ecosystem for this future economy.”
This license is a major milestone that follows a number of registrations for Binance’s local entities in the MENA region and across Europe in Italy, France and Spain, and further attests to Binance’s desire to be a regulation-led platform with robust compliance and security controls that have consumer protection and market integrity at its core.
Mr. Changpeng Zhao (CZ), founder and CEO of Binance, commented that “At Binance we welcome regulations that are globally consistent, enable responsible innovation, protect users, and give them choice. VARA’s unique operating model is setting a benchmark for the global industry, and this most recent registration is an acknowledgment of our compliance and safety processes in the new regulatory framework. We strongly believe there is a significant opportunity to work with our industry peers to develop consistent implementation standards around the world as we have been doing in Dubai.”
