The Dubai government partners with the crypto platform, allowing payments in cryptocurrencies

On Tuesday, the Dubai government announced a partnership with the crypto platform Crypto.com, permitting the use of cryptocurrencies to pay for government service fees. This move marks an important step for Dubai in promoting digital finance on a global scale.

 

A day earlier, an official from the Dubai Department of Finance and Mohammed Al Hakim, the President of Crypto UAE, signed a memorandum of understanding during the Dubai Fintech Summit.

Dubai government officials stated in a press release that the partnership aims to enable the use of cryptocurrencies to pay for government service fees, especially through stablecoins.

 

Once the technical arrangements of the plan are finalized, individuals and "corporate customers of government entities" will be able to use digital wallets on Crypto to pay service fees.

 

Moreover, the Dubai Department of Finance added, "The platform will also securely convert these payments into UAE dirhams and transfer them to Dubai's financial accounts, ensuring a simplified, secure, and innovative payment framework."

Pushing forward the "cashless strategy"

The adoption of cryptocurrencies for government payments is not only a functional improvement but also an important practice for Dubai in promoting a digital and cashless future.

 

The press release mentioned that this partnership will help Dubai achieve its "cashless strategy." The goal of this strategy is to achieve 90% cashless transactions in the public and private sectors of Dubai by 2026, aiming to reinforce Dubai's status as a leading digital city.

 

Over the years, Dubai has been investing in the crypto industry, which is a key step in its aspiration to become a global technology hub.

 

Crypto has also been making progress in Dubai in recent years. In 2023, Crypto received its first license to conduct regulated virtual asset service activities for entities in Dubai.

 

Last month, the company announced that Dubai's virtual asset regulatory body issued it a limited license to provide derivatives.

 

Al Hakim of Crypto recently pointed out that the partnership with Dubai is a "truly groundbreaking global initiative." However, the current announcement has not specified which types of digital currencies the Dubai Department of Finance will accept, nor has it indicated which types of government fees are covered by the agreement.