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Digital assets exchange application Fasset is now live in the UAE after the company was granted a Virtual Asset Service Provider license by the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), according to a press release (pdf).
During the pre-launch campaign for the app in 4Q 2023, the company received around 1.1 mn signups, and it is currently targeting 100k during the application’s first year of launch, co-founder Daniel Ahmed told Enterprise. “VARA is a unique regulator that is very open and allows us to work with the regulator to onboard customers not only in the UAE but globally.”
Beyond crypto exchange, Fasset will offer tokenized commodities, stablecoins, and soon will venture into tokenized US equities, sukuk, and real estate, according to Ahmed. Users will be able to bundle assets into exchange traded funds, stake for rewards, and access remittance services, aiming to streamline digital investing.
Looking ahead: The company plans to expand within the GCC in the coming weeks, beginning with customer onboarding in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, before eventually making the app available globally. Fasset is actively pursuing its series B funding round, slated to conclude in 1H 2024, Daniel notes.
The UAE gets kudos for being a crypto-friendly space: Ahmed notes that the UAE is experiencing a rise in demand for digital assets, driven by local institutional funds, family offices, high-net-worth individuals, and businesses seeking payment solutions. With regulatory frameworks established and an increasing number of licensed companies, crypto has become firmly entrenched in the UAE’s financial landscape according to the Fasset co-founder. “So the beauty of digital assets is why it’s multifaceted in nature, that’s why we called the company ‘Fasset.’ It’s not just a way to save money, it’s a way to send, remit and make payments. There’s a lot of positive demand.”
More on Fasset: Established in 2019 and co-founded by Mohammad Raafi Hossain (LinkedIn) and Daniel Ahmed (LinkedIn), the company aims to democratize access to global assets through its application, enabling people to invest in digital and real-life assets, according to the startup’s LinkedIn page. The pre-Series B fintech startup has raised USD 26.7 mn in funding to date.
