The Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) has issued a market alert on July 10 regarding local crypto exchange BitOasis.
The notice states that BitOasis’ conditional MVP license has been suspended for failing to meet related requirements.
Dubai issued BitOasis an MVP license on April 12, 2023, granting the company the ability to perform market operations within limited time frames of 30-60 days. However, BitOasis’ failure to meet the stipulated terms within these timeframes led to VARA’s punitive action.
The MVP license, which stands for Minimally Viable Product License, is a preliminary license that does not allow full operations in the Dubai crypto market. VARA also said that BitOasis cannot apply for the Full Marketplace Product License (FMP) until the company meets the necessary requirements. He also said that BitOasis’ license for institutional and qualified retail investors remains “non-operational”.
VARA said it will continue to monitor BitOasis’ compliance with corrective actions and regulatory benchmarks. The regulator explained that the latest alert is only a public notice and should not replace the due diligence of individual investors.
Dubai attracts other crypto companies
The latest actions against BitOasis have shed light on regulatory developments that have both allowed and restricted crypto activity in Dubai.
Dubai sent an unrelated reprimand to another crypto exchange, OPNX, in April 2023. It accused the platform of operating as an unlicensed and unregulated platform and issued a cease and desist order against the company and its operators.
Despite these recent regulatory moves, Dubai — and, more broadly, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) — are often seen as crypto-friendly areas. Coinbase and Ripple have recently considered the region as a potential overseas base.
Other companies, such as Bybit, Crypto.com and OKX have obtained Dubai’s MVP license and are currently licensed to operate in the region. Binance also obtained the MVP license in September 2022 after attempting to do so in March of the same year.
Dubai virtual assets regulator suspends critical license for crypto exchange BitOasis, citing regulatory non-compliance that first surfaced on CryptoSlate.
