Dubai’s crypto regulator has released an order against the MEXC crypto exchange, calling its presence in the Emirate unlawful. As per an official statement, Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) has directed MEXC to halt its service offerings in Dubai with immediate effect.
VARA, in its official statement said, MEXC is breaching Dubai’s crypto regulations by advertising and offering crypto investing and trading services without having completed the required licensing formalities.
“MEXC does not hold any licence to provide Virtual Asset services in/from Dubai and is not authorised to provide any Virtual Asset services in/ from Dubai. The company is therefore not allowed to offer, promote, or market any Virtual Asset products or services in Dubai or to its residents,” the crypto regulator said.
In order to ensure that Dubai’s investor community is protected against scams and financial risks linked to crypto, the VARA has laid out a set of rules that crypto players have to comply with in order to operate in the Emirate.
Crypto companies are mandated by VARA to adhere to anti money laundering and counter terror financing rules along with specified cybersecurity and data protection standards.
The agency has constantly warned its users against engaging with unlicensed exchanges as they are not covered under the user protection shield it offers.
“VARA advises consumers and investors in Dubai to avoid engaging with MEXC for the purpose of Virtual Asset services, and to exercise caution when considering interactions with unregulated entities,” it noted.
MEXC is yet to respond to VARA’s directive.
Last week, KuCoin also received a similar notice from VARA, deeming its operations as also unlicensed in Dubai.
The crypto space is often targetted by cyber threat actors looking to steal from the investors. In order to curb instances of scams and frauds, international crypto rules now include comprehensive licensing regimes for crypto firms.
Last year in August for instance, South Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit had formally pushed crypto exchanges including KuCoin and MEXC from the Apple Store over unregistered operations.