Latest news with #VASPs
Crypto Insight
23-05-2025
- Business
- Crypto Insight
Dubai regulator clarifies real-world asset tokenization rules: Lawyer
Newly updated guidelines from Dubai's crypto regulator include provisions on real-world asset (RWA) tokenization and clarify rules for issuers. On May 19, Dubai's Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) released its updated Rulebook for virtual asset service providers (VASPs) operating in the region. The regulator gave market participants until June 19 to comply with the new rules. The regulator previously told Cointelegraph that it had enhanced supervisory mechanisms and brought consistency across activity-based rules. One of the more prominent changes includes regulatory clarity on RWA tokens. Irina Heaver, partner at the United Arab Emirates-based law firm NeosLegal, told Cointelegraph that the updated rules clarify RWA issuance and distribution. 'Issuing real-world asset tokens and listing them on secondary markets is no longer theoretical,' Heaver told Cointelegraph. 'It's now a regulatory reality in Dubai and the broader UAE.' A 'viable' path to realize RWA hype Heaver compared RWAs to security token offerings (STOs), an earlier attempt from the crypto space to tokenize securities like stocks, bonds and real estate investment trusts. However, the UAE crypto lawyer said that STOs 'died a peaceful death in 2018 to 2019.' The lawyer told Cointelegraph STOs did not work out because of the lack of regulatory clarity, viable secondary market trading venues, institutional investor appetite and liquidity. Still, the situation is different for RWAs. Heaver told Cointelegraph that RWAs are the next foundational layer for institutional adoption of blockchain and virtual assets. Heaver said that VARA's new rules already cover them as Asset-Referenced Virtual Assets (ARVA) tokens. She said: 'VARA's newly updated Virtual Asset Issuance Rulebook (May 2025) addresses these failures head-on. Regulated exchanges and broker-dealers in Dubai are now authorized to distribute and list ARVA tokens.' The lawyer said this solves an issue in jurisdictions like Switzerland, where token issuance is possible, but listing and secondary trading remain unregulated. Lawyer shares requirements for RWA issuers Heaver said ARVA tokens are defined under Dubai law as representing direct or indirect ownership of real-world assets, granting entitlement to receive or share income and purporting to maintain a stable value by reference to real-world assets or income. ARVA tokens are also backed or collateralised by such real-world assets or constitute a derivative, wrapped, duplicated, or fractionalised version of another ARVA. The lawyer said issuers must meet specific requirements, including a Category 1 Virtual Asset Issuance license, a comprehensive white paper and a risk disclosure statement. In addition, issuers must have a paid-up capital of 1.5 million UAE dirhams (about $408,000) or 2% of reserve assets held. The issuers are also subjected to monthly independent audit obligations and must adhere to ongoing supervisory oversight. 'VARA is providing regulatory clarity, and it's giving the industry a viable, enforceable path to turn the hype of RWA tokenization into reality,' Heaver told Cointelegraph. 'This matters because it marks a shift, from theory to execution, from fiction to framework.' Source:
Crypto Insight
20-05-2025
- Business
- Crypto Insight
Dubai regulator sets compliance deadline for updated crypto rules
Dubai's crypto regulator has given licensed digital asset companies until June 19 to comply with its updated activity-based Rulebooks to enhance market integrity and risk oversight. On May 19, Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) announced that it had released Version 2.0 of the Rulebooks. The regulator said it had strengthened controls around margin trading and token distribution services, harmonised compliance requirements across all licensed activities and given clearer definitions for collateral wallet arrangements. VARA's team will engage with licensed entities and expects the companies to comply with the updated rules after a 30-day transition period. 'In line with global regulatory best practices, a 30-day transition period has been granted to all impacted virtual asset service providers [VASPs], with full compliance required by 19 June 2025,' VARA wrote. VARA highlighted that it had enhanced supervisory mechanisms across several regulated activities. This includes advisory, broker-dealer, custody, exchange, lending and borrowing, virtual asset (VA) management and investment, and VA transfer and settlement services. A VARA spokesperson told Cointelegraph that the updates will bring consistency across all activity-based rules defining core operational terms. The spokesperson gave examples of terms like 'client assets,' 'qualified custodians,' and 'collateral requirements' as some of the terms more consistently defined in the update. The update also aligned risk management and disclosure obligations, where activities overlap, in areas like brokerage, custody and exchange. 'The aim was to reduce ambiguity and help VASPs navigate cross-functional compliance more easily,' VARA told Cointelegraph. Dubai regulator tightens leverage thresholds for margin trading As for margin trading, the VARA spokesperson said they tightened leverage thresholds, mandated clearer collateralisation standards, and enhanced the monitoring obligations for VASPs offering this feature. Margin trading allows traders to control large positions with smaller amounts of capital. It amplifies both gains and losses. Tightening the leverage traders use helps limit the risks of widespread liquidations in a market downturn. The crypto regulator introduced a new section on token distribution that sets out licensing prerequisites, investor protections and marketing restrictions. The spokesperson emphasized the marketing restrictions, especially for 'retail-facing offers.' 'It's about aligning with global conduct expectations and closing observed regulatory gaps,' the VARA spokesperson said. Source:
Zawya
19-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
VARA issues updated activity rulebooks to strengthen market integrity and risk oversight
Dubai, UAE – The Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority [VARA] today announced the publication of Version 2.0 of its activity-based Rulebooks, marking the latest milestone in Dubai's ongoing commitment to delivering a future-proof regulatory framework that balances innovation with robust market safeguards. The updated Rulebooks include enhanced supervisory mechanisms across the following regulated virtual asset [VA] activities: Advisory services Broker-dealer services Custody services Exchange services Lending and borrowing services VA management and investment services VA transfer and settlement services Key refinements in Version 2 include strengthened controls around margin trading and token distribution services, clearer definitions for collateral wallet arrangements, and harmonised compliance requirements across all licensed activities. The updates are designed to promote greater market discipline, risk transparency, and operational resilience across Dubai's VA ecosystem. In line with global regulatory best practices, a 30-day transition period has been granted to all impacted virtual asset service providers [VASPs], with full compliance required by 19 June 2025. VARA's Supervision Teams will engage directly with each licensed entity to provide activity-specific guidance as needed. 'Our commitment remains to ensuring that innovation and compliance go hand in hand. These rulebook updates reinforce the foundations of a responsible, scalable ecosystem,' said Ruben Bombardi, General Counsel and Head of Regulatory Enablement at VARA. The revised Rulebooks are available for public access via VARA's official website: About VARA Established in March 2022, following the effect of Law No. 4 of 2022, VARA is the competent entity in charge of regulating, supervising, and overseeing VAs and VA Activities in all commercial zones across the Emirate of Dubai, including Special Development Zones and Free Zones but excluding the Dubai International Financial Centre. VARA plays a central role in creating Dubai's advanced legal framework to protect investors and establish international standards for Virtual Asset industry governance, while supporting the vision for a borderless economy. For further information or media enquiries, please contact: media@
Coin Geek
09-05-2025
- Business
- Coin Geek
South Africa implements FATF Travel Rule for digital assets
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... The Financial Action Task Force's (FATF) Travel Rule for digital currency has taken effect in South Africa, ushering in a new era of transparency in the country's digital assets sector. The Financial Intelligence Center (FIC) published Directive 9 in November 2024, notifying all VASPs that the Travel Rule would take effect on April 30. Under the Rule, VASPs must collect the originator and beneficiary information, including their full names, ID or passport numbers (if they are South African or foreigners, respectively), dates of birth and residential addresses. Transaction details such as amount, date and the unique transaction ID must also be included. The Travel Rule applies to all transaction sizes. However, some of the requirements are simplified for transactions below R5,000 ($270). The rule further requires VASPs to monitor and report any suspicious transactions. All the collected data must be stored for at least five years and made available to authorities upon request. South African VASPs have taken measures to comply with the new regulations, with violations punishable by fines and license revocations. Binance announced two weeks ago that it would require transaction information from its users, with violators risking unprocessed transactions. Others, like homegrown exchanges Luno and VALR, have made similar announcements. Luno told its users that the Travel Rule will allow VASPs to adhere to the same standards as their legacy finance peers. 'If this sounds kind of familiar, the Travel Rule has applied to financial institutions like banks for over twenty years. Banks use the SWIFT system to interact with one another for this purpose,' Luno stated. VALR has also reminded users to provide counterparty details since mid-April in preparation for the new standard. The exchange has partnered with London-based identity service provider Sumsub to comply with the rule. As hundreds of VASPs scramble to comply with the new standard, Bitcoin wallet Centbee has been ready for years. Co-founder Angus Brown told CoinGeek three years ago that this had been the norm for the previous 12 months. 'We have been treating it as if it's applicable in our business for the last year. So, we are doing all the things we're supposed to do and are compliant already,' he stated. However, others have expressed concerns, particularly over the low reporting threshold of $270. Sean Sanders, whose company, Altify, offers simple 'crypto' investment products, says it's one of the lowest thresholds globally. 'This will place extra compliance costs on investment platforms like ours, which may result in slower transaction processing times and an overall worse user experience for our users relative to platforms operating outside of South Africa,' he told a local outlet. Watch | AlphaDAPP: Revolutionizing blockchain adoption in Africa title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen="">
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
South Korea Plans Sanctions Against BitMEX, KuCoin, Others: Report
South Korean financial authorities are planning sanctions against crypto exchanges who are operating illegally in the country, business newspaper Hankyung reported on Friday. The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) classified a number of exchanges who are not registered as Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) as targets for sanctions, according to the report. The exchanges targeted - BitMEX, KuCoin, CoinW, Bitunix and KCEX - have been found to be operating Korean-language websites without reporting to FIU. For that reason, they are classed as illegal businesses, as per the country's regulations. "We are currently reviewing blocking access to unreported overseas exchanges that are providing services to domestic investors through consultation with the Korea Communications Standards Commission," an FIU official said, accordinh to the report. "We are organizing damage cases and related data to strengthen communication between authorities, and we expect to see tangible measures taken within this year." BitMEX, KuCoin and CoinW did not respond to CoinDesk's request for comment. Last month, South Korean crypto exchange Upbit was prohibited from allowing new customers to transfer assets to its platform for three months due to non-compliance with its obligations as a regulated provider. Read More: Crypto Exchange Bithumb Raided by South Korean Prosecutors Over Embezzlement Allegations: Report Sign in to access your portfolio
