Tether’s USDT stablecoin has been officially recognized as an “Accepted Virtual Asset” (AVA) by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) within the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the UAE’s international financial center in Abu Dhabi.
The move positions USDT alongside other approved stablecoins, such as World Liberty Fi’s USD1, Circle’s USDC, and Ripple’s RLUSD on ADGM’s stablecoin register, which aligns with Abu Dhabi’s push to become a global hub for regulated digital assets.
Tether gains stablecoin approval from Abu Dhabi regulator
The approval confirms that the ADGM now rates USDT as an Accepted Fiat-Referenced Token. This designation allows regulated firms inside the financial zone to actually deploy the asset in supervised activities, ranging from settlement to asset servicing.
The most important thing about this development is not the endorsement, but the fact that USDT can now be used inside ADGM on networks including Aptos, Celo, Cosmos, Near, Polkadot, TRON, Tezos, Kaia, and TON, extending what was previously a narrower set of permissions limited to Ethereum, Solana, and Avalanche.
Tether’s chief executive, Paolo Ardoino, believes that the approval is a recognition of USDT’s role within international settlement markets and as a gateway for financial inclusion, sentiments known to align closely with Abu Dhabi’s current positioning.
From Tether’s perspective, the approval is a great win as the UAE upgrade enhances network interoperability, allowing USDT to move between decentralized applications and institutional systems without the usual fragmentation issues.
On the other hand, Abu Dhabi continues to show that it is focused on hosting infrastructure, not speculation, as it presents itself as a destination for credible crypto finance and a potential bridge between global capital and blockchain-based settlement rails.
As reported by Cryptopolitan earlier today, Mohammed Al Shamsi, a senior official at the UAE’s National Security Agency, declared that “Bitcoin has become the key pillar in the future of financing,” referencing the Emirates’ commitment to the crypto space.
Ripple’s RLUSD has received its own recognition inside ADGM
USDT’s approval is happening weeks after Ripple’s dollar-backed stablecoin, RLUSD, was cleared for use inside the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM). This allowance came after it was formally recognized as an Accepted Fiat-Referenced Token, which helped it establish a regulatory foothold in one of the world’s most tightly regulated crypto hubs.
According to Ripple, the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) designation means that firms licensed by the authority can now use RLUSD for regulated activities. The approval puts the stablecoin on the same level as a small group of tokens permitted inside the ADGM’s ring-fenced financial system.
For Ripple, it’s an important development and represents progress into the Middle East, where banks and payment firms have been open to adopting tokenized settlement rails.
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