Key takeaways

  • Payward's Dubai entity, Payward FZCO, received a Virtual Asset Service Provider license from Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority on Oct. 6, 2026, after preliminary approval in May 2026.
  • The license permits retail, professional and institutional services in the United Arab Emirates, including dirham-denominated spot and margin trading, staking, and Kraken Prime access; Payward is targeting launch in the coming weeks.
  • Payward now reports more than 100 licenses and registrations across Europe, the Americas, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East.
  • The approval places Kraken's parent among licensed providers in a market where Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority register lists 58 licensed providers, up from 49 active companies in May 2026, according to Cointelegraph.

What happened

The Oct. 6, 2026 approval is a regulatory completion step rather than a fully specified product launch. It allows Payward FZCO to operate as a licensed Dubai entity for clients in the United Arab Emirates, but the company has not named a customer onboarding date or detailed every product rollout.

The license follows a May 2026 preliminary authorization. That earlier step allowed Payward to prepare local operations ahead of client onboarding. The full approval clears the final regulatory stage and permits activities covered by the authorization. Payward says it is targeting launch in the coming weeks.

Payward outlines an initial service set at launch: direct dirham deposits and withdrawals, dirham-denominated spot and margin trading, on-chain staking for eligible clients, tokenized equities through xStocks, crypto transfers using Krak, and institutional access via over-the-counter spot trading and Kraken Prime. The company has not identified which cryptocurrencies will receive dirham trading pairs.

Payward co-CEO Arjun Sethi said clients in the United Arab Emirates would use the same order book available across other markets, and described the regulatory framework as one of the clearest in the world. The company also plans embedded trading services so regional partners can integrate its trading capabilities.

Market context

The license gives one of the largest global crypto exchanges a regulated path into the Gulf's retail and institutional market, rather than serving United Arab Emirates customers through offshore entities. It also puts Payward alongside banks and brokers expanding under separate regulatory regimes in the country.

Cointelegraph reported that Standard Chartered launched spot Bitcoin and Ether trading for institutional clients in the United Arab Emirates in September through its Dubai International Financial Centre branch, regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority. It also reported that Capital.com revealed plans for spot crypto services in August after affiliate Capital Vault secured a virtual-asset license from the United Arab Emirates' Capital Market Authority. The Dubai regulator's register now lists 58 licensed providers, up from 49 active companies in May 2026.

The build-out extends beyond the United Arab Emirates. In October, Payward connected with Singapore Gulf Bank to provide round-the-clock United States dollar settlement for selected institutional customers across Asia and the Gulf, with other currencies planned for later phases. In September, Nasdaq agreed to invest $100 million in Payward at a reported $21 billion valuation, with the companies working on tokenized equities, market surveillance and blockchain-based settlement infrastructure; Nasdaq Equity Tokens are expected to launch in the second quarter of 2027.

Reports in October also indicated Payward was discussing potential arrangements with BNY and Wells Fargo covering trading, custody, payments and institutional liquidity, though neither had been confirmed as a completed agreement.

Why it matters

For clients in the United Arab Emirates, the immediate significance is regulatory clarity and local settlement. Direct dirham deposits and withdrawals reduce the need for customers to move funds through another fiat currency outside the platform before trading. For institutions, over-the-counter execution and Kraken Prime connect local access to Payward's broader liquidity network.

For tokenized equities, xStocks is part of the first wave, but jurisdiction-specific restrictions remain. Payward has not detailed which tokenized assets United Arab Emirates customers can access under the new authorization. The company said in September that xStocks had processed more than $42 billion in cumulative transaction volume, and it and Ledger outlined plans for xStocks wallet integration through Ledger's self-custody service.

Crypto derivatives and additional yield products are planned for later in 2026 and into 2027, subject to further regulatory approvals. Payward has not said which contracts will be offered or set a timetable for individual products.

What to watch

The first unresolved item is the actual customer onboarding date. Payward says it is targeting launch in the coming weeks, but no specific date has been named.

The second is product scope: which cryptocurrencies get dirham pairs, which tokenized assets United Arab Emirates clients can access, and which tiers of clients can use staking, margin and other eligible services.

The third is the approval path for future offerings. Derivatives and yield products require further regulatory approvals, and Nasdaq tokenized equity and settlement plans run into 2027. Reports from Cointelegraph agree on the substance of the Dubai regulator's approval, but neither outlet named a firm launch date.