Dubai Real Estate Developer Damac Properties Accepts Crypto as Payments

Damac Properties, a major real estate development company, based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), announced Wednesday that it would sell properties using Bitcoin and Ethereum as payment methods.

The Dubai-based firm stated that enabling purchases of properties through cryptos will revolutionise the future of real estate. Damac also mentioned that facilitating such an approach would offer convenience and optionality for global real estate investors.

Ali Sajwani, general manager of operations at Damac and lead of the company’s digital transformation initiatives, talked about the development and said: “This move towards customers holding cryptocurrency is one of our initiatives to accelerate the new economy for newer generations, and the future of our industry.”

Sajwani further stated: “It is crucial for global businesses like ours to stay at the top of evolution. Offering yet another transactional mode is exciting, and we are glad to recognise the value this technology brings to our customers.”

Earlier this week, the Damac Group, a UAE-based business conglomerate, announced plans to enter into the landscape of the metaverse and develop its own digital cities.

The Damac Group is the parent company of global property development firm Damac Properties, data centre company Edgnex, luxury jeweller de-Grisogono and fashion house Roberto Cavalli. The Group announced plans to invest funds up to $100 million for the metaverse project.

The group will be run under the banner, D-Labs’ and will be led by Ali Sajwani, Damac General Manager and the CEO of D-Labs.

The initiative is part of the company’s wide ambitions to enter into digital assets and non-fungible tokens (NFT).

Crypto Interest Increasing in the Region

The latest development echoes a trend whereby recently, many local firms in Dubai have been warming up to cryptocurrencies. This has been attributed to a significant rise in the crypto interest and adoption in the United Arab Emirates.

Currently, the Emirate has been promoting virtual assets with crypto-friendly regulations to enable Dubai to become a regional crypto hub. In March, Dubai passed legislation that significantly helped attract foreign crypto firms into the region.

As a result, the Bybit crypto exchange moved its headquarters to Dubai from Singapore and started operations this month. Another cryptocurrency exchange in Singapore, Crypto.com, also opened its regional hub in Dubai and announced plans to launch a huge recruitment drive in the coming months. Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, and FTX, a Bahamas-based cryptocurrency exchange, also recently acquired licenses and launched their operations in Dubai.

In February, KIKLABB, a Dubai government-owned licensing firm, allowed cryptocurrency as a payment option for its services. KIKLABB, which helps firms to set up in Dubai, permitted customers to pay for trade licenses and visa fees by Bitcoin, Ethereum, or Tether. 

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