M2 Exchange can now provide custody services to UAE residents

M2 Exchange, a soon-to-be launched crypto exchange based in Abu Dhabi, was granted the ability to offer custody and multilateral trading services for UAE residents on Wednesday.

Abu Dhabi’s financial regulator awarded M2 with a Financial Services Permission (FSP) license in the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), an economic free zone. 

With the license, M2 can service both institutional and retail clients who want to buy, sell or custody digital assets. And now that its foot is in the door, M2 plans to launch its platform “later this year,” according to a press release from the ADGM.

Blockworks reached out to M2, and the company said it doesn’t have a confirmed launch date.

M2 CEO Stefan Kimmel said he was “delighted” to be receiving this license and pledged to keep in close contact with the ADGM during the process of getting the platform off the ground.

“The process of obtaining the license is the first step on our journey and we will remain in close dialogue with ADGM to ensure transparency around the custody of client assets,” Kimmel said in a statement.

The ADGM also gave a glimpse into the particulars of what M2 will be offering. 

Investors will be able to buy bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH) on the upcoming crypto exchange. The platform will have “institutional grade trading features” and will have a “on and off-ramp for fiat payments.”

After the platform goes live, M2 is planning to “increase the number of assets and services offered to include derivatives along with a market leading yield product,” according to the statement.

Abu Dhabi financial regulator also recently granted crypto company Rain the same license it awarded to M2.

---

Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

• The Breakdown: Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily.
• 0xResearch: Alpha in your inbox. Think like an analyst.