The federal framework vertical covers the constitutional and legislative architecture governing tokenized assets across the United Arab Emirates at the national level. This includes Cabinet Decision No. 111 of 2022 on Virtual Asset Service Providers, Federal Decree-Law No. 32 of 2021 on Commercial Companies, SCA implementing regulations, and CBUAE payment token oversight.
Federal regulation operates alongside — and sometimes in tension with — the free zone regulatory frameworks administered by VARA, ADGM FSRA, and DFSA. The federal vs free zone comparison examines this jurisdictional architecture in detail.
Browse the deep dives, briefs, and analysis covering the UAE’s federal tokenization regulatory architecture below.
cabinet decision no. 111 of 2022 on virtual asset service providers
comprehensive analysis of uae cabinet decision no. 111 of 2022 establishing the federal regulatory framework for virtual asset service providers, including licensing requirements, sca coordination role, and implementation status.
sca federal securities tokenization rules
analysis of the securities and commodities authority's regulatory framework for tokenized securities in onshore uae, including decision no. 23/r.m of 2020, fintech regulatory sandbox, and implementing regulations.
cbuae payment token and virtual asset regulation
analysis of the central bank of the uae's regulatory framework for payment tokens, stablecoins, digital dirham cbdc, and virtual asset-related payment services.
token classification: the federal taxonomy
how the uae federal regulatory framework classifies tokens as securities, payment instruments, or utility tokens — and which authority has jurisdiction over each category.
federal decree-law no. 32 of 2021 and virtual asset corporate structures
analysis of uae federal decree-law no. 32 of 2021 on commercial companies as it applies to virtual asset service provider corporate structures, governance requirements, and compliance obligations.