Circle has secured a major regulatory win in the United Arab Emirates, gaining a Financial Services Permission (FSP) license from the Abu Dhabi Global Market’s Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA).
The approval allows Circle to operate as a fully regulated Money Services Provider within the UAE’s capital market free zone, the company said in a Tuesday’s press release.
The move comes as the UAE continues to position itself as a global center for digital-asset regulation, with ADGM leading efforts to attract firms seeking clear rules for fiat-referenced tokens and tokenized financial services.
The license grants Circle the ability to offer regulated payment, settlement, and digital-asset services tied to USDC, giving the company a formal operating presence inside one of the world’s fastest-growing hubs for compliant crypto activity.
“Regulatory clarity is the foundation of a more open and efficient internet financial system. We are honored to work with the FSRA in ADGM,” Circle co-founder and CEO Jeremy Allaire said. The announcement also follows Dubai’s earlier recognition of USDC and EURC under the DFSA’s crypto token regime, giving Circle regulatory footing across both of the UAE’s major financial zones.
Dr. Jaffar, currently a senior executive at Visa overseeing the GCC region, will join Circle to guide its strategy, build regional partnerships, and push for broader adoption of USDC in business payments and financial infrastructure across the UAE and beyond.
Tether said ADGM now permits licensed institutions in the financial free zone to conduct regulated activities involving USDT across Aptos, Celo, Cosmos, Kaia, Near, Polkadot, Tezos, TON and TRON. On Monday, Binance disclosed that it has also secured full authorization to operate its flagship Binance.com platform under ADGM oversight, a milestone that comes after years of regulatory scrutiny.
As reported, Tether’s USDT stablecoin has also secured regulatory recognition as an approved fiat-referenced token across a wide range of blockchains inside the ADGM.
