VARA grants 50th VASP license to Tribe Tokenisation

Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority issued its 50th virtual asset service provider (VASP) license on Monday, awarding approval to tokenized-assets platform Tribe Tokenisation FZE. VARA warned that an active license does not automatically indicate a firm has started serving customers.

VARA said the licence milestone brings its total to 50 VASPs and noted some newly licensed companies may undergo a controlled operationalization period before offering services or onboarding customers. The regulator commented, “holding an active license does not necessarily mean a firm has completed its commercial launch,” and said it is validating updated operational figures for 2026.

At the end of 2025, VARA classified 39 licensed VASPs as fully operational. The regulator evaluates market activity using metrics such as transaction volumes, assets under management, employment levels and audited financial statements rather than relying on license counts alone.

Tribe Tokenisation FZE is described as a tokenized-assets platform that creates digital representations of physical assets so they can be traded or managed on blockchain-based systems. VARA’s licensing includes firms engaged in tokenization and asset management as well as trading platforms.

Dubai established VARA in March 2022 as a regulator dedicated to virtual assets and built a licensing framework for companies operating in the sector. The regulator said its activity-based approach and the emirate’s broader financial infrastructure have supported growth in the licensed population.

VARA noted that headline license numbers are not directly comparable across jurisdictions because regulators classify and license activities differently. For reference, Singapore lists 37 major payment institutions authorized to provide digital payment token services, while Hong Kong’s regulator has licensed 13 virtual asset trading platforms.

VARA will continue to verify which licensed firms are fully operational and will monitor financial and employment data to determine how many companies are already onboarding customers versus preparing to launch.