With the regulatory green light now secured, Payward confirmed that it can officially operate as a fully regulated virtual asset service provider within the jurisdiction. The licensing allows the firm to extend its comprehensive suite of services directly to retail, professional, and institutional investors residing in the region. This major development comes on the heels of a preliminary approval granted back in May, which initially enabled the company to finalize its robust operational set-up and prepare its infrastructure ahead of onboarding local clients.
At the time of the official launch, retail clients utilizing Kraken within the United Arab Emirates will gain access to spot and margin trading capabilities via dirham-denominated pairs. Furthermore, users will enjoy the convenience of funding and withdrawing directly in United Arab Emirates dirhams, eliminating unnecessary friction associated with foreign currency conversions. In addition to standard trading pairs, local clients will also be given access to advanced offerings, including on-chain staking, xStocks tokenized equities, and Krak, the company’s dedicated solution for seamless crypto transfers.
Institutional clients operating in the region are set to benefit from tailored institutional offerings as well, including over-the-counter spot trading and Kraken Prime, the company’s dedicated prime brokerage arm. Looking further ahead, Payward anticipates rolling out crypto derivatives and innovative new yield products later in 2026 and extending into 2027, though these future offerings remain subject to receiving final regulatory approvals from the relevant authorities.
This latest regional expansion highlights Payward’s aggressive global growth strategy. The parent company currently holds more than 100 licenses and regulatory registrations worldwide, creating a vast compliance network spanning Europe, the Americas, the Asia-Pacific region, and the Middle East. By securing a foothold in Dubai’s rapidly evolving regulatory landscape, Kraken positions itself to capture growing institutional and retail demand in a jurisdiction that has actively sought to establish itself as a premier global hub for cryptocurrency and blockchain innovation.
The launch in the United Arab Emirates coincides with a period of intense corporate activity and high-profile strategic deals for Payward. In September, financial media reported that Nasdaq Inc. was making a substantial $100 million investment in Payward, valuing the cryptocurrency exchange parent company at an impressive $21 billion. As part of that reported strategic alignment, Kraken is expected to distribute Nasdaq’s tokenized stocks directly on its own trading platform, bridging the gap between traditional equity markets and digital asset infrastructure.
In addition to its ties with traditional financial market giants, Payward recently announced a major partnership with SoFi Technologies. Under the terms of that agreement, SoFi customer cryptocurrency orders will be routed through Kraken Prime, leveraging the institutional-grade prime brokerage infrastructure that Kraken launched in 2025. The collaboration also includes plans to list SoFi’s proprietary stablecoin directly on the Kraken exchange platform, further integrating traditional fintech platforms with established cryptocurrency exchanges.
These developments reflect a broader industry trend in which major cryptocurrency exchanges are increasingly pushing into the traditional finance sector. By expanding their product suites to encompass traditional equities, bonds, and other conventional financial instruments, companies like Kraken are actively working to transform their digital applications into comprehensive financial hubs that function as primary accounts for all types of financial activity.
