The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has increased its efforts to prevent money laundering in the region. The country wants to avoid money laundering in the purchase of real estate with cryptocurrencies.
Currently, the UAE is carrying out many actions to become a global crypto and tech hub. Dubai has already become a global tech hub. The Dubai police released the first NFTs in March as part of a campaign to showcase its security, innovation, and communication values. In March, Dubai granted virtual asset licenses to Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange.
The UAE authorities want to track real estate payments made in cryptocurrencies Bitcoin and Ethereum to prevent money laundering. The UAE government said in a statement that real estate agents will have to alert money laundering authorities in the country about all the property sales paid with cryptocurrencies.
The UAE’s measures
The ongoing measures to counter money laundering taken by the UAE government are in place to boost the integrity of the country’s financial system. In recent years, the UAE government has cooperated with its partners from the public and private sectors to support the anti-money laundering campaign in the country. The UAE is committed to combating illegal financial activities like money laundering in the region.
The UAE Economy Minister, Abdulla bin Touq Al-Maari, said that the new rules will leave little room for manipulation or illegal practices that could negatively affect the work environment, the economy, and investment in the real estate and legal sectors.
Reportedly, real estate agents would also be required to file reports with the Financial Intelligence Unit, which is responsible for tracking down dirty money. The UAE government did not give more details about the new rules, which implies that even the smallest Bitcoin transactions will be reviewed by the authorities.
These measures by the UAE government are in line with those of the International Financial Action Task Force, which establishes global standards against money laundering. In March this year, the Financial Action Task Force recognized that the UAE has made positive progress in countering financial crime. The UAE also promised to work closely with the Task Force to address the remaining areas of improvement.
UAE’s enforcement of anti-money laundering law
In 2021, the UAE issued new guidelines on anti-money laundering. In 2019, the Abu Dhabi Global Market updated its anti-money laundering rules to align them with federal legislation in order to eradicate illegal financial activities. In November 2021, the UAE’s Ministry of Economy established an anti-money laundering department to deal with money launderers.
In February this year, the UAE planned to issue a federal crypto license for virtual asset service providers. The UAE Securities and Commodities Authority considered the Financial Action Task Force guidelines and ongoing crypto policies in the United States, United Kingdom, and Singapore for framing its crypto license legislation.
What did Ola Doudin say?
Ola Doudin, the Co-Founder and CEO of BitOasis, recently said in a statement that the “United Arab Emirates is a world-class example of how to deal with a pandemic.” Earlier this year, the UAE topped the list of countries with a population of over one million in addressing the Covid-19 pandemic, in terms of the rate of fully vaccinated individuals.
During the pandemic in 2020, the UAE sent medical aid, including vaccines, personal protection equipment, ventilators, and tests to 140 countries.
The UAE is known for offering exceptional quality of life. Many people around the world want to move to the UAE. Dubai has the highest number of foreign-born residents anywhere in the world with over 70 percent of the population being from overseas. More than 200 nationalities are present in the UAE. Indians occupy the highest position with 2.77 million, followed by Pakistanis with 1.28 million. The UAE guarantees them the freedom to live in dignity within a framework of human brotherhood.