VARA VASP licences just crossed a milestone that puts Dubai ahead of two of Asia’s biggest financial hubs. The Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) has now issued 50 Virtual Asset Service Provider licences, with tokenisation platform Tribe Tokenisation becoming the 50th firm to clear Dubai’s regulatory bar. That figure puts Dubai ahead of Singapore’s 37 licensed digital payment token providers and Hong Kong’s 13 licensed virtual asset trading platforms, reinforcing the emirate’s pitch to institutional crypto firms weighing where to base regulated operations.
Key takeaways: VARA has licensed 50 Virtual Asset Service Providers, moving ahead of Singapore (37) and Hong Kong (13) in regulated crypto firms. The milestone lands as VARA shifts from a licensing-first posture to active supervision, tightening governance, capital and operational-resilience requirements even as its roster keeps growing.
What VARA’s 50 VASP Licences Signal for Dubai
Dubai launched its dedicated virtual-asset licensing regime in 2022, and the climb to 50 VARA VASP licences has been steady rather than sudden. Roughly 39 of the licensed firms are described as fully operational, with the remainder completing onboarding steps such as final systems audits and capital verification. Under the current process, the full journey from initial application to a Full VASP Licence typically takes four to seven months, according to VARA’s own guidance — long enough to filter out under-capitalised applicants, short enough to remain competitive against rival hubs.
The licence roster spans exchanges, custodians, brokers and, increasingly, tokenisation platforms like Tribe Tokenisation, reflecting how Dubai’s regulatory ambitions have expanded beyond simple spot trading into securities-adjacent digital-asset activity.
How Dubai Pulled Ahead of Singapore and Hong Kong
The comparison is not exact — Singapore’s Monetary Authority and Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission run different licence categories with different scopes — but the headline count still matters to firms making a location decision. Dubai’s advantage stems partly from running one of five parallel UAE regulatory regimes (VARA, the ADGM’s FSRA, the DFSA in the DIFC, and now the federal Capital Markets Authority), giving founders multiple entry points rather than a single national gatekeeper. Our guide to the UAE’s rewritten virtual asset framework breaks down how those regimes now interlock.
VARA has also just published Version 2.0 of its activity-based rulebooks, a move regulatory lawyers describe as a shift toward a more “future-proofed” framework — one built to absorb new activity types like tokenisation without a full legislative rewrite each time.
VARA VASP Licences Now Mean Active Supervision, Not Just Approval
Getting licensed is no longer the finish line. VARA has been explicit that it is moving into a supervision-first posture, with examiners focused on governance structures, capital discipline, internal controls and operational resilience on an ongoing basis rather than at approval only. For institutions, that means the cost of a Dubai licence increasingly includes continuous compliance overhead, not just the upfront application. Readers weighing which UAE regulator actually covers their activity can cross-check our explainer on UAE crypto regulators.
What It Means
For institutional allocators and crypto-native firms alike, the 50-licence mark is less a victory lap for VARA than a signal that Dubai’s crypto sector has moved from novelty to critical mass. A deeper bench of regulated counterparties makes it easier for banks, custodians and asset managers to find licensed partners for custody, trading and settlement inside the emirate rather than routing activity offshore. It also raises the competitive bar: newer applicants now enter a market where VARA is actively supervising, not just stamping approvals, and where standing out means demonstrable governance — not just a licence certificate on the wall.
FAQ
How many VASP licences has VARA issued?
VARA has issued 50 Virtual Asset Service Provider licences to date, with roughly 39 firms reported as fully operational and the rest completing onboarding, according to VARA’s public licensing updates.
Is a VARA licence the same as an ADGM or CMA licence?
No. VARA licenses firms operating within the Emirate of Dubai specifically. The ADGM’s FSRA and the federal Capital Markets Authority run separate regimes with their own licensing processes, and recognition across regimes depends on the UAE’s evolving mutual-recognition arrangements rather than a single unified licence.
This article is for information only and is not financial, investment or legal advice. Always do your own research and speak to a licensed professional before making any decision.
