The Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) of Dubai issued a market alert on July 10 regarding local crypto exchange BitOasis.
The notification indicates that the BitOasis conditional MVP license has been suspended because it does not meet the related requirements.
Dubai granted BitOasis an MVP license on April 12, 2023, allowing the company to conduct market operations within a limited period of 30 to 60 days. However, the inability of BitOasis to meet the set conditions within these deadlines led to punitive measures from the VARA.
The MVP license, which stands for Minimally Viable Product license, is a provisional license that does not allow full operations in the Dubai crypto market. The VARA also stated that BitOasis cannot apply for the Full Market Product (FMP) license until the company meets the necessary conditions. It also said BitOasis’ license to 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 warning is just a public notice and should not replace individual investors’ own due diligence.
Dubai attracts other crypto companies
The latest actions against BitOasis shine a spotlight 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 those recent regulatory moves, Dubai — and, more broadly, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) — are often seen as crypto-friendly areas. Both 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 allowed to operate in the area. Binance also obtained the MVP license in September 2022 after attempting to do so in March of that year.
The post Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulator Suspends Critical License to Crypto Exchange BitOasis for Regulatory Non-Compliance appeared first on CryptoSlate.