Many governments and regulators remain wary of cryptocurrencies, but there are some who believe that the future of cryptocurrencies and the future of finance are directly correlated.
There are some people in the UAE who are optimistic about the future of crypto assets, such as UAE minister of AI and Digital Economy, Omar Bin Sultan Al Olama, who wrote a piece in the financial journal The Banker on September 28.
According to Minister Omar, Some people who developed cryptocurrencies were hoping to use them to bypass financial institutions and systemically change the financial system, but in reality, this is not practical or sustainable.
Minister Omar, strongly believes that:
“Rather, the future of digital currencies lies firmly within the mainstream financial system, where they can make an enormous difference to several problems in areas such as payments, banking and investing.”
Minister Omar believes that if cryptocurrency were to become mainstream and lead the way in impacting the global economy at scale, and if we want to see cryptocurrencies thriving, we should encourage law makers and regulatory bodies to draft protective laws and regulations that protect consumers and the financial system and that FinTech and Blockchain companies could adhere to, which will provide a safe and scalable environment for all parties involved.
UAE is focusing on three areas: encouraging innovation and adoption of crypto assets and providing a favorable regulatory environment for them to prosper.
The UAE was trying to promote new technologies, while ensuring that the necessary regulations were in place.
We have been able to foster an environment where people are well prepared to start exploring the virtual economy and cryptocurrency is proving that by boosting adoption, crypto assets and technologies will succeed.
Regulations are also important, as demonstrated by the recent launch of the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (Vara), which mission is to regulate and govern digital assets and cryptocurrency insititutions operating from within the UAE jurisdiction.
Omar bin Sultan Al Olama said that UAE is hosting regular events for people interested in cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies. Those UAE-based events are meant to host industry leaders and other stakeholders in the crypto space.
And, because of that, he said:
“Cryptocurrencies (…) have enormous potential to revolutionize the existing financial system if implemented in the correct way. (…) The UAE has adopted this model and hopes to inspire other countries to embrace it too.”
UAE officials are actively pursuing what their digital economy minister has been preaching – using crypto and blockchain in businesses, education, and to fight crime.
UAE has also licensed crypto exchange Kraken to fully operate in the country, and contributed in issuing a VIP VISA crypto card. Emirati women residing in Abu Dhabi have now access to free crypto domains. And top it all up, The Emirate of Abu Dhabi is supporting the digital economy by opening vacant positions for virtual jobs roles associated with its metaverse sector.