Analysis of new crypto exchanges in the Middle East

Crypto exchange in the Middle East

Retail trading has accelerated, particularly following the COVID-19 epidemic. A flood of novice home-based investors entered the financial markets thanks to tech-enabled trading platforms that were easily accessible from their own devices. And in addition to the specific equities, mutual funds, and ETFs, these investors haven’t shied away from including cryptocurrencies in their portfolios.

Using regional platforms offers traders and investors two significant benefits as the Middle East sees a rise in cryptocurrency investment. They can buy cryptocurrency in their home currencies, eliminating any F.X. drawbacks. Second, having a municipal license offers additional assurance to investors (although crypto trading remains an inherently risky activity).

Rain crypto exchange

Bahrain-based Rain is a licensed cryptocurrency platform and custodian. Users in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Oman can also access the platform, which offers trades in the U.S. dollar and the euro. The platform’s website says clients use it in more than 50 nations. The CBB has granted Rain a license to act as a broker of digital assets. For its Middle Eastern development, the company raised US$6 million in a Series A fundraising round in January of this year. Coinbase, a major cryptocurrency exchange, was one of the investors in the round.

Matrix

Matrix is a cryptocurrency exchange situated in Abu Dhabi. In addition to allowing trading and settlement of cryptocurrency trades in U.S. dollars, the firm offers custodian services. The FSRA in Abu Dhabi oversees Matrix as a multilateral trading facility and custodian. The platform was introduced in August this year as the first cryptocurrency exchange established in the UAE to be authorized and governed by the FSRA.

Wallex crypto exchange

Wallex is one of the best crypto exchanges in the Middle East. All information between the user and the system is exchanged and encrypted by SSL protocols so that there is no possibility of information theft. Moreover, all system information and data are stored on dedicated servers that benefit from multi-layer software and hardware firewalls. In Wallex exchange, all important and identity data of users are stored encrypted. In this case, even if the server is hacked, the hacker cannot misuse this information. All vital information in the system is regularly backed up, so the possibility of losing user information is practically zero.

NakitCoins

Turkish non-custodial cryptocurrency exchange NakitCoins enables customers to swap cryptocurrencies for U.S. dollars. It was not immediately clear whether licensing or regulations applied to it. NakitCoins provides payment gateway services, cryptocurrency storage, exchange, and credit card purchases. NakitCoins operates four physical sites in Turkey that serve as cryptocurrency exchanges in addition to being a decentralized online marketplace. At these places, users can buy and trade cryptocurrency for cash. NakitCoins boasts 21,000 users, according to its website.

EasyCoins

An Oman-based non-custodial cryptocurrency exchange is called EasyCoins. The portal accepts payments in riyals of Oman. The exchange connects to users’ personal wallets to process buy and sell orders. Users of EasyCoins can also trade cryptocurrencies via UniSwap, an external decentralized finance platform. Users must have a personal bank account and an open personal wallet to utilize EasyCoins. Each account a user creates on the platform is connected to a unique cryptocurrency and wallet-receiving address.

DigiDinar

Users can trade cryptocurrencies, including the DigiDinar coin (DDR), DigiDinar Token (DDRT), and DigiDinar Stable Token (DDRST), using the Kuwaiti dinar on the DigiDinar cryptocurrency market. The order book matching engine on the platform can process 1,400,000 orders per second.

CoinMENA

In Bahrain, there is a cryptocurrency exchange called CoinMENA. The Sharia-compliant digital asset trading platform just completed its first round of seed fundraising, raising US$9.5 million for MENA development. The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) has fully authorized and governed CoinMENA as a digital asset operator. In Bahrain, the business has a Virtual Asset Service Provider – Category 2 license. Bahrain, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Kuwait currently support the platform for trading in local currencies in these nations. The U.S. currency is also supported by it.

BitOasis

The BitOasis cryptocurrency exchange is based in the UAE. In October of this year, the platform raised $30 million in Series B financing for regional expansion, licensing, and regulatory needs. On BitOasis, users can trade more than 20 cryptocurrency and fiat pairs from the UAE and Saudi riyals in dirhams. BitOasis has been granted Financial Services Permission (FSP) by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) (FSRA). To fully operate as a multilateral trading facility and custodian for virtual assets subject to FSRA regulation, the company is actively working on it. Additionally, it has a GoAML reporting platform registration with the UAE Financial Intelligence Unit.

Binance

Taking the concept a step further, Binance, a company that deals in digital assets, was also asked to help create an IVAE (International Virtual Asset Ecosystem). According to CNN BUSINESS, Binance gained approval for a license-in-principle in Bahrain in December 2021; however, as of February 23rd, 2022, it is still not licensed as an exchange.

CoinMama

In the UAE, CoinMama has become a very well-known local cryptocurrency exchange. With yet another new option previously unavailable, this exchange has upped the ante in the cryptocurrency world: the ability to immediately purchase bitcoins using a bank transfer or a credit/debit card.