Dubai’s VARA Fines, Issues Cease-and-Desist Orders Against 7 Crypto Entities

Election 2024 coverage presented by
Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), one of the bodies overseeing the crypto industry in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), said it fined seven “entities” for operating without the required licenses and for breaching marketing regulations.
The regulator also issued cease-and-desist orders to the entities, it announced on Wednesday.
VARA did not reveal the names of the entities, and said it is investigating them together with local authorities. The fines imposed range from 50,000 dirhams ($13,600) to 100,000 dirhams each.
“All entities in question have been instructed to immediately cease all activities and desist from undertaking any marketing or advertising of virtual asset services,” the statement said.
The action is rare for a region attempting to project itself as a global crypto hub. Dubai has recently given full regulatory approvals to crypto exchanges OKX, Binance and Crypto.com, among others. Earlier this month, the UAE exempted crypto transactions from paying value-added tax (VAT). In August, a court order appeared to give soft legitimacy to crypto being used to compensate a worker by a company.
VARA said its action was also a public warning to all to avoid engaging with any unlicensed firms.
Read More: UAE Exempts Crypto Transactions From Value Added Tax
Edited by Sheldon Reback.

Disclosure
Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information have been updated.CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk has adopted a set of principles aimed at ensuring the integrity, editorial independence and freedom from bias of its publications. CoinDesk is part of the Bullish group, which owns and invests in digital asset businesses and digital assets. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive Bullish group equity-based compensation. Bullish was incubated by technology investor Block.one.
Amitoj Singh is a CoinDesk reporter.