Payward FZCO, the parent of global crypto exchange Kraken, received Full Market Approval from Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) on 6 October 2026. The full Virtual Asset Service Provider licence covers Broker-Dealer Services and Management and Investment Services, with permission to serve retail, qualified and institutional investors. The company plans to launch services in the UAE "within the coming weeks".
The decision was reported by Fintech News UAE alongside the Payward and Kraken announcement. VARA's public register shows the licence as active. For the market, this is the second signal in 24 hours of Dubai's regulated crypto perimeter expanding: on 12 October 2026 OKX UAE launched tokenised US equities trading under VARA — another global exchange operating in the emirate under a local licence.
What VARA actually approved
Payward FZCO received the full VASP (Virtual Asset Service Provider) licence — the final status following Preliminary Approval granted in May 2026. The categories are Broker-Dealer Services and Management and Investment Services, two of the eight VARA-licensed activity categories. Permitted client types: retail, qualified and institutional investors. For Kraken this means that a single legal entity can serve private users, family offices and professional traders alike — without splitting into separate companies.
What will be live at launch
According to the company, the opening product line-up in the UAE looks like this:
- Spot and margin trading in AED-denominated pairs — local liquidity and quotes in national currency.
- Direct AED deposits and withdrawals — fiat in and out without a mandatory stablecoin bridge.
- On-chain staking — yield on supported digital assets.
- xStocks — tokenised shares of US-listed companies, on-chain.
- Krak app — peer-to-peer crypto transfers.
- Institutional block: OTC spot execution and Kraken Prime (prime brokerage for professional clients).
Crypto derivatives and yield products are not part of the opening set. According to the company, they will be rolled out "later in 2026 – early 2027" and will require separate regulatory approvals — i.e. an extension of the existing licence or an additional category.
Why AED rails are the key detail for the UAE
In practice, the real difference of a regulated platform is not the coin list but how money moves in and out. Direct AED deposits and withdrawals remove the mandatory USDT bridge: a user receives salary or revenue in dirhams, tops up the Kraken account, buys crypto or xStocks and withdraws back to AED — all inside one app. For companies this closes the loop on a familiar UAE corporate bank account: settlement runs in the national currency rather than through a technical stablecoin with its own risks.
The second practical layer is the local regulatory status. A platform under VARA must comply with requirements for client asset custody, risk disclosure and listing rules. This does not make crypto risk-free, but it changes the legal plane: disputes and client protection run under Dubai and VARA rules rather than offshore platform terms.
What the company says
Arjun Sethi, Co-CEO of Payward and Kraken, framed the launch like this: "From launch, clients in the UAE get the same order book and multi-asset coverage we run in every other market, under one of the clearest regulatory frameworks in the world."
Context: Kraken, VARA and ADGM
This is not Kraken's first UAE licence. Back in 2022 the exchange obtained a Financial Services Permission (FSP) from the ADGM Financial Services Regulatory Authority — the regulator of the Abu Dhabi financial centre. VARA is a separate regulator; its jurisdiction covers mainland Dubai and the emirate's free zones, except for the DIFC, which has its own regulator (DFSA). After 6 October 2026 the Payward group has two UAE licensing perimeters: ADGM in Abu Dhabi and VARA in Dubai, with distinct service scopes.
For the market, this fits the broader trend: major global crypto platforms are taking local UAE licences rather than operating from outside. Over the past twelve months the full VARA package in Dubai has been completed by OKX UAE, Binance (via a local entity) and now Payward/Kraken. In parallel, ADGM in Abu Dhabi continues to issue its own approvals — from FSPs to in-principle approvals for new applicants.
What this means for users and businesses
For a UAE retail user this is one more regulated option alongside OKX UAE, Binance UAE and local brokers. The main differences between platforms usually lie in fees, depth of liquidity in AED pairs and the mix of additional products (staking, tokenised assets, derivatives). Kraken enters with a full opening set but without derivatives — those are flagged for late 2026 – early 2027 subject to separate approvals.
For corporate clients in the UAE the interesting bundle is "OTC spot + Kraken Prime": prime brokerage from a global exchange under a local licence. For crypto entrepreneurs who are still weighing a Dubai launch, the Payward playbook is a working template: start with Initial Approval, upgrade policies and capital, move to Full Market Approval. A detailed breakdown of the eight VARA-licensed activity categories and capital requirements is in our guide to the VARA licence in Dubai.
This material is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. The availability of specific Kraken products and conditions in the UAE depends on final regulatory sign-off; verify current parameters on kraken.com, in VARA's public register and in official Payward communications.
