Nomura’s digital-asset subsidiary gets full Dubai crypto license

Dubai: Dubai awarded a full crypto license to a subsidiary of Nomura Holdings Inc, it was announced on Tuesday.

Laser Digital Middle East FZE, the Dubai-based digital-asset subsidiary of Nomura, will be able to offer virtual asset broker-dealer and investment management services locally, Laser Digital said on Tuesday. Laser plans to launch over-the-counter trading services and digital-asset investment products for institutional investors in coming months, it said.

The approval “will allow us to innovate in the asset class and come up with products that suit the institutions in the virtual asset space,” Jez Mohideen, CEO of Laser Digital, said in an interview.

Launched last fall, Laser Digital is headquartered in Switzerland and has offices in Dubai and London. It chose Dubai as one of its locations because it has a dedicated regulator for virtual assets and a growing cryptocurrency market, according to Mohideen.