Ben Strack

Komainu has received approval from Dubai&#8217;s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) to provide its custody services to clients in Dubai, the company told Blockworks Tuesday.



The crypto custodian is among the first to receive a full Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) in a region that various companies in the segment <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/crypto-bullish-on-uae">have sought to set up outposts</a>. Crypto firms’ interest in <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/dubai">Dubai</a> accelerated after <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/dubai-is-the-latest-government-to-roll-out-crypto-law-set-up-regulator">the emirate established VARA</a> in March 2022.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“VARA has created a robust regulatory framework allowing firms like ourselves to innovate, whilst operating safely and exploring the future potential of digital assets, which includes tokenization and DeFi services,” Komainu’s strategy lead Sebastian Widmann told Blockworks in an email.&nbsp;



Read more: <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/dubai-free-zone-now-home-to-more-than-500-crypto-startups">Dubai free zone now home to more than 500 crypto startups</a>



VARA has a four-stage licensing process: a provisional permit, preparatory and operating minimal viable product (MVP) licenses and a so-called full market product (FMP) license.&nbsp;



Reaching this final step in VARA’s licensing process allows the company to provide institutional staking and collateral management in the region via its Komainu Connect platform, the company noted. It can also offer custody and custodial staking.



<a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/komainu">Komainu</a> — started in 2018 as a joint venture between Japan-based financial giant Nomura, blockchain company Ledger and crypto investment firm CoinShares — services institutional clients, such as asset managers, banks, liquidity providers and exchanges.



It had <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/crypto-custodian-komainu-follows-exchanges-to-dubai">gained preliminary approval to operate in Dubai</a> in July 2022. Komainu then received its MVP license from the Dubai regulator in November.



“We see tremendous growth potential in the [Gulf Cooperation Council countries] and expect to increase our headcount in the region to meet growing client demand,” Widmann said.&nbsp;



A spokesperson noted that Komainu currently has five employees in Dubai under Widmann’s leadership and plans to double that number by the end of the year.



The company’s license comes a few weeks after Laser Digital, the crypto unit of Nomura, <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/nomura-laser-digital-dubai-license">obtained a full license from VARA</a>. Crypto exchange <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/binance-dubai-operational-license">Binance received an operational MVP license last month</a> — bringing the company one step away from offering a broader range of authorized services in the region.



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Komainu becomes latest crypto firm to gain full license in Dubai

<div id="highlights-block_62e06d78a26e4" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>Komainu seeks to launch institutional-focused yield product and other services in Dubai</li>
 <li>The company is aiming for at least 10 employees in the emirate by the end of the year</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



Crypto custodian Komainu has gained provisional regulatory approval to operate in Dubai, becoming the latest blockchain firm to begin setting up shop in the region.



Founded in 2018, Komainu was created by Japanese investment bank Nomura, European digital asset manager CoinShares and French hardware wallet maker Ledger. 



Komainu, which is headquartered in the Channel Islands, now seeks to employ at least 10 staff in its new Dubai outpost by the end of the year.



“Komainu is looking to provide custody and yield services to local exchanges and fund managers as well as help new market participants enter the digital asset industry in the region,” Sebastian Widmann, Komainu’s head of strategy, told Blockworks in an email.&nbsp;&nbsp;



The initial approval came from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), which was <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/dubai-is-the-latest-government-to-roll-out-crypto-law-set-up-regulator/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">established in March</a>. The company will work with the regulator to apply for a full license, Widmann said, but did not comment on a timeline for that approval.&nbsp;



Dubai and VARA are creating a regulatory framework to inspire a local hub for digital asset businesses, according to the executive.



“Komainu actively works with regulators, partners and our clients to make sure that our platform is held to the highest of standards, and this latest endorsement by the Dubai Government is a further testament to that fact,” Widmann said in a statement. “By expanding into the [Middle East and North Africa] region, we are bringing a much-needed service to institutions operating within a regulated crypto marketplace.”



The company will seek to launch <a href="https://www.komainu.com/komainu-adds-yield-generating-platform-to-custody-solutions/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Komainu Yield</a> — allowing institutions to earn yield on assets custodied with the company — and other new services in the emirate, the executive told Blockworks.



Komainu’s move to the emirate is not unique, as Dubai granted virtual asset licenses to <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/ftx-granted-crypto-license-with-dubai-hq-in-sights/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">FTX</a> and <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/binance-granted-license-to-operate-in-dubai/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Binance</a> in March. <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/crypto-com-secures-provisional-approval-to-open-crypto-exchange-in-dubai/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Crypto.com</a> and Hong Kong-based crypto custodian <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/hex-trust-greenlit-for-virtual-asset-license-in-dubai/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hex Trust</a> gained regulatory approval to conduct business in the region in June. More recently, <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/okx-to-expand-in-uae-after-dubai-regulatory-approval/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">OKX revealed plans</a> earlier this month to build its presence in Dubai.



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Crypto Custodian Komainu Follows Exchanges to Dubai

<div id="highlights-block_624716ff21750" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>Lead agent in the 2016 Bitfinex hack investigation joins blockchain intelligence solutions provider</li>
 <li>Chainlink Labs adds the ex-CTO at Diem Association and a former VP at LinkedIn to its leadership ranks</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



FTX Europe appointed Marcel Lötscher to the company’s newly created head of regulatory strategy role, and he will step into the position on Oct. 1. He will join the company to continue FTX&#8217;s global expansion into Europe and the Middle East.



Lötscher, who holds a doctoral degree in collective investments, is former head of the securities and markets division at the Financial Market Authority (FMA) of Liechtenstein and a member of its executive board.



Patrick Gruhn, head of FTX Europe, highlighted the different regulations across European countries. He told Blockworks that cryptoassets are deemed a financial instrument in Germany, for example, but are treated like commodities in Austria and Switzerland.



“If we have the same rules in all European countries, that makes it easier for crypto firms to sell their product, and at the end of the day, also to be scalable,” Lötscher said.



Crypto lending and borrowing platform Celsius appointed Guillermo Bodnar as its chief technology officer.



Bodnar most recently worked as chief solutions officer at software development company Globant. Before that, he was chief information officer of Arbinet, where he built the largest computer-based telecommunications exchange and trading platform.



Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky founded Arbinet and worked with Bodnar at the company. He noted in a statement that he and Bodnar will focus on “unlocking financial freedom for the next 100 million crypto users.”



Blockware Mining named Jackie Price as its chief operating officer. She is set to lead the Chicago-based company’s corporate partnerships, government affairs, strategic planning, marketing and investor relations.



Price previously served as chief marketing officer of the Chamber of Digital Commerce, one of the largest digital asset industry trade associations, and was also formerly a senior executive at public relations and marketing consultancy firm Edelman.



Izumi World has named a former marketing executive at Gatorade, Samsung, Verizon, Xbox and Rarible as its chief marketing officer.



Jamie Davies spent more than two decades as director of marketing for Gatorade and Samsung. He was also formerly head of brand and innovation marketing at Verizon and a senior advertising manager at Xbox.



A game in which players capture and train magical beasts called Izumis from live-tracked locations in the real world, <a href="https://www.izumiworld.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Izumi World</a> seeks to be a leading augmented reality game in the play-to-earn and traditional gaming spaces. It also plans to launch a non-fungible token (NFT) collection in the second quarter.



Chainlink Labs has added the former chief technology officer at Diem Association and an ex-vice president at LinkedIn to its leadership ranks.&nbsp;



Dahlia Malkhi, who before working at Diem spent about 10 years at Microsoft Research and co-founded VMware Research, has joined the blockchain oracle solutions provider as its chief research officer.



Chainlink Labs also announced this week that Mike Derezin, who spent more than a decade at LinkedIn, joined the company late last year as its chief operating officer.



Pete Stephens has joined digital asset custodian Komainu as its chief technology officer.&nbsp;



He previously served as head of technology for Switzerland’s SIX Digital Exchange. He focused on capital markets post-trade technology in roles at DrumG Technologies, UBS AG, IBM and PwC.



Stephens joins Komainu shortly after its introduction of Komainu Yield and will be responsible for expanding the company’s staking services and the buildout of additional yield generating offerings.



TRM Labs named former IRS-Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI) Special Agent Chris Janczewski as head of global investigations.



Janczewski was the lead agent in the <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/couple-arrested-as-government-recovers-3-6b-in-stolen-bitcoin/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bitfinex hack investigation</a> while at IRS-CI, focusing on the alleged conspiracy of two individuals to launder $4.5 billion in cryptocurrency stolen during 2016. He signed a seizure warrant that recovered $3.6 billion in cryptocurrency, the largest seizure in United States government history.



TRM provides blockchain intelligence solutions to help financial institutions, cryptocurrency businesses and public agencies combat crypto-related fraud and financial crime.&nbsp;



Casey Wagner contributed to this story.



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