Where are businesses like Binance setting up shop in the emerging crypto centre of Dubai?

Dubai’s crypto scene is pumping.

In the 12 months ending in June, investors sent $34 billion in crypto transfers to the United Arab Emirates, which doesn’t levy income tax, according to data from Chainalysis. That’s an almost 42% increase from the prior period.

Dubai, the biggest city in the UAE, has its own digital assets regulator, regularly hosts crypto conferences, and is home to some of the industry’s biggest names, including Changpeng Zhao, Binance’s former CEO, who was recently released from a US prison.

As Asian markets scramble to establish regulatory regimes around crypto and the US girds for changes in the White House and Congress, the Persian Gulf nation has emerged as a stable centre for the industry.

Here’s an inside look at how Dubai’s crypto scene works:

Inside the federal government lies the UAE’s seven emirates, which are like provinces or states. Dubai, an emirate in its own right, has its own crypto regulator: the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority — or VARA, as it’s commonly known.

And the city has a suite of free zones, or geographic locales generally designed to attract specific industries.