DUBAI SEPTEMBER 27 2022 / EMURGO Africa – EMURGO Africa, an Africa and Middle East-focused venture arm of EMURGO, a founding entity of the Cardano blockchain, today announced a strategic investment completed earlier this year in a financing round for MidChains, a fully licensed and regulated virtual asset multilateral trading facility (exchange) and custodian based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
EMURGO Africa’s investment is strategically placed on building virtual asset trading infrastructure to meet the increasing demand for blockchain-based services in the UAE, and the Middle East, and serve as a bridge to Africa. Additionally, the investment will broaden awareness of Cardano in the region, and create synergy for MidChain’s activities in Africa.
MidChains is regulated by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), and built and operated by a new generation of experienced financial services professionals. The company is backed by sovereign wealth funds in the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) and reputed international investors including Mubadala Investment Company (Mubadala), MIAX Exchange Group, DisruptAD (ADQ’s venture platform), and GSR. Recently, MidChains joined Visa’s Fintech Fast Track program to access and utilize Visa’s growing partner network for global payments using virtual assets, among other benefits.
“EMURGO Africa’s investment in MidChains reflects our strong belief in the vast potential for digital asset adoption in the Middle East. The UAE is a strategic market that is a critical gateway for broader blockchain industry expansion into the Middle East and Africa. With a proven track record and strong presence in the Middle East, MidChains will drive the flourishing of digital assets in the region as part of the global Web3 movement,” said EMURGO Africa co-CEO Shogo Ishida.
“Receiving investment from an established partner like EMURGO Africa, an entity well embedded within the fabric of the crypto-ecosystem is a real vote of confidence in the MidChains story. The investment will support us in developing our trading infrastructure and expanding our secure, sovereign wealth-backed offering to businesses, and institutional and retail investors across the Middle East. The partnership will also enable us to explore new opportunities within Africa,” said Basil Al Askari MidChains Co-founder and CEO.
According to a PwC Middle East report, “the UAE is one of the fastest growing cryptocurrency markets in the world generating transactions worth $25 billion” and that “the UAE has been harbouring an encouraging environment for the growth of its crypto industry with Dubai’s enactment of the Virtual Assets Law and establishment of the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA)” which demonstrate the government’s commitment to reducing potential financial crime risk while promoting technological innovation.
About EMURGO Africa
EMURGO Africa invests and partners with Africa-focused enterprises, startups, and accelerators to foster the development of socially impactful solutions on Cardano’s third-generation and environmentally-sustainable blockchain. To connect and learn more, visit https://dev.emurgo.io.
About MidChains
By changing the way people exchange, MidChains seeks to democratize new ways of gaining and holding wealth, with the transparency and regulation that makes it safe for all. MidChains is a fully licensed virtual asset multilateral trading facility and custodian based in the UAE and regulated by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), built and operated by a new generation of experienced financial services professionals. It is backed by reputed regional and international investors including Mubadala Investment Company (Mubadala), MIAX Exchange Group, and DisruptAD, ADQ’s venture platform. We act as a key access point for virtual/crypto assets, empowering retail investors and linking global institutions to the region.
