Republic Crypto, part of US-based securities crowdfunding firm Republic, has “expanded to the UAE with an aim to grow its presence and offer its services across the MENA region.” Republic Crypto is partnering with Ghaf Labs, a UAE-based incubator in supporting blockchain-based firms. Ghaf Labs is a sister company of Ghaf Capital Partners, a Web3 private investment firm.
Republic Crypto received a license from the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) in 2022. Dubai has emerged as a crypto-friendly jurisdiction providing defined rules for the nascent sector of finance.
Republic Crypto said it is “committed to contributing to the regional regulatory framework by collaborating with all relevant governmental entities, starting within the UAE.”
Republic Crypto stated that it will “help the region’s startups and businesses tap into and leverage the web 3 industry to further realize their full potential. Avalanche, Dappradar, and Zed are a few of the company’s many successes thus far.”
Ghaf Labs is expected to help Republic Crypto “identify and support exciting new projects as well as build a strong presence within the UAE.”
Additionally, Republic Crypto has signed an agreement with MyCo ( formerly MContent ), a Dubai-based web3 streaming platform.
Anwaar AlMahmeed, Managing Director of Republic in MENA, stated:
“At Republic, we have been evaluating the MENA landscape, building our network, and having consistent conversations with investors, startups, and regulators for our various lines of business. We determined early on that the UAE is a regional leader in the web 3 space. I am excited to finally announce Republic Crypto’s local presence and services, along with our partnership with the wonderful team at Ghaf Labs, a leader in the local UAE market, whom I trust will help build our vision for this market according to our shared values and dreams. I am confident that this partnership will be able to foster a robust ecosystem of quality and innovation and help shape the future of the industry in the region.”
Feras Al Sadek, Founder and CEO at Ghaf Labs, explained that the expansion into the UAE as well as the partnership with Ghaf is a significant step for the local blockchain industry as they will create a strategy that will provide “cutting edge” solutions for their clients.
In recent years, Republic has aggressively expanded into new markets such as the UK/Europe with the acquisition of Seedrs while partnering with firms in South Korea and opening an office in Singapore. This is Republic’s first move in the MENA region.