Solana’s Dubai expansion is bold – mixing real estate with revolution

Justin Harper

Solana is expanding into Dubai in a big way. In partnership with blockchain company RockawayX it is launching Solana City—a physical hub for Web3 builders, funders and founders.

Before this permanent “city” was announced, Solana had operated an “economic zone” model, a pop-up city home to hundreds of residents and Web3 projects. In simple terms, the zone aimed to bridge the gap between the web3 economy and real-world economies in techno-optimistic nations.

The first Solana Economic Zone was held in Buenos Aires last year and showcased the potential of blockchain in offering practical solutions in everyday contexts. Argentina was picked because of its high level of crypto awareness and adoption. 

The Solana Economic Zone has now made its way to Dubai, ahead of the major crypto TOKEN2049 event but with an exciting twist – it will pave the way for the first ever Solana City. The bricks-and-mortar hub will start with just 48 initial units, but with plans to scale tenfold. For both Solana and RockawayX, it’s a high-stakes bet on real estate and reputation. It’s also a signal: Solana wants to physically anchor itself in global cities. 

While Solana is well known in the crypto space, it has provided a good platform for RockawayX to increase its brand awareness. But it’s no small fry either, as the blockchain investment firm manages over $2 billion in assets, and has just closed a second crypto venture fund raising $125 million. As for a partnership, only time will tell.

I first heard about the Solana Economic Zone last year when I sat on a panel with Farhaj Mayan, co-founder of Forma, which spearheaded the Solana Economic Zone initiative. The first economic zone was established in Ireland to incentivize the airline industry. They have evolved quite a bit since then, now creating micro-economies that showcase Web3 in real life. 

It could be a masterstroke for Solana, which has seen its token price plummet this year, down around 50% from its January high. As Solana’s real world initiative unfolds, it may well serve as a blueprint for other regions aiming to embrace the potential of blockchain.​ The Dubai Economic Zone is part of a broader initiative by Solana to create hubs around the world. When people can see something physical in front of them, it helps them to understand and then adopt the technology. 

For too long the blockchain has been purely theoretical, and lacked real world utility. The tokenization of real world assets (RWAs) and Solana’s economic zones and city are a step in the right direction to mass adoption. When I chatted with Mayan, he was raving about the Buenos Aires project, telling me it offered a proof of concept for decentralized living, and showing that Web3 infrastructure could smoothly plug into local systems.

The announcement of Dubai as the second location for a Solana Economic Zone made perfect sense given the high crypto adoption rate in the city and the UAE government’s pro-crypto stance. But the Solana City announcement caught many by surprise. But then again Dubai does seem to attract crypto players who want a physical presence, not just a virtual one. For example, a 17-storey Crypto Tower is coming soon as well as Musk Tower, fronted by Elon’s father Errol. With 30% of Dubai’s population owning crypto and a government pushing AI, metaverse and blockchain integration, it’s the perfect playground for Solana.

If the future of Web3 is to be more than just a conference circuit of builders talking to builders, we need to build for regular people. If this happens, the UAE won’t just be home to crypto investors and founders, it could become home to the first full-stack blockchain economy. 

Justin Harper is a freelance business, finance and crypto writer and editor who has worked for the BBC, FT Business, Daily Mail and Campaign Middle East during a career spanning more than 25 years.