RAKBANK becomes the first UAE bank to offer crypto trading for retail

The National Bank of Ras Al Khaimah (RAKBANK), a government-owned slope successful the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has go the archetypal accepted slope successful the state to connection retail crypto trading.

In a Tuesday property release, the slope announced the motorboat of a crypto brokerage work done its mobile banking app, allowing customers to buy, merchantability and swap cryptocurrencies straight from their UAE dirham accounts.

“We admit the accidental this solution volition supply to customers successful the UAE, arsenic we judge they merit a much businesslike and seamless crypto buying, selling and swapping travel that is afloat regulated and wholly successful AED [dirhams],” Raheel Ahmed, Group CEO of RAKBANK, said.

The caller offering is powered by Austria-based Bitpanda, with transactions facilitated by Bitpanda Broker MENA DMCC, a Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA)-regulated entity successful Dubai.

RAKBANK announcing its upcoming crypto trading. Source: RAKBANK website

Related: Dubai regulator clarifies real-world plus tokenization rules

Bank-backed crypto trading present possible

RAKBANK said customers volition beryllium capable to commercialized crypto without needing to transportation funds to an outer speech oregon person betwixt fiat currencies, eliminating overseas speech fees. The integration uses Bitpanda’s infrastructure to execute trades and negociate custody.

“We are arrogant to beryllium the archetypal accepted slope successful the UAE to alteration simple, secure, and regulated entree to a world-class integer assets platform,” Ahmed said.

The crypto trading work is presently disposable by invitation only, with a broader rollout expected successful the coming months.

Lukas Enzersdorfer-Konrad, lawman CEO of Bitpanda, called the concern “a large infinitesimal for integer assets successful the region.” Bitpanda is regulated successful aggregate European jurisdictions and has existing organization partnerships with Deutsche Bank, N26 and Raiffeisen Bank.

Cointelegraph reached retired to RAKBANK for remark but had not received a effect by publication.

Related: Dubai taps Crypto.com to alteration crypto payments for govt services

RAKBANK launches crypto level successful UAE

Last year, RAKBANK partnered with Bitpanda to physique a integer plus absorption level for residents. The slope described integer assets arsenic the “future,” adding that they connection a much businesslike and unafraid mode for customers to negociate finances.

RAKBANK’s propulsion into crypto comes arsenic the UAE strives to found itself arsenic a superior destination for blockchain and crypto projects.

The Dubai Multi Commodities Centre escaped zone has attracted implicit 600 crypto companies, with much firms flocking to the Dubai International Financial Centre and One Central territory arsenic the state positions itself arsenic a person successful integer finance.

Last month, the Dubai Financial Services Authority, the fiscal regulator successful complaint of the Dubai International Financial Centre, approved Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin. 

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