It appears that Coinbase aims to secure its position in international waters.
Coinbase executives have met with United Arab Emirates (UAE) leaders and policymakers to discuss the country's potential as a strategic international hub for the crypto exchange.
The news was revealed on the crypto exchange's May 7th blog post claiming that Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and other executives traveled to UAE.
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The company is reportedly in talks with regulators in the Abu Dhabi Global Market and Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority as part of its potential expansion into the region.
Armstrong spoke at the Dubai Fintech Summit on May 8th, stating:
<The UAE is> exciting for us as a potential hub to build as well, an international hub for Coinbase that could serve not only in the Middle East but parts of Africa or other countries in Asia.
During the talk, Armstrong admitted that the US currently lags in regulatory clarity, which negatively affects the crypto industry in the country.
Coinbase recently launched a crypto derivatives trading platform called Coinbase International Exchange amidst potential securities violation charges from the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Despite Armstrong's critique of US regulations, he assured shareholders during a Q1 earnings call that the company has no plans to move operations out of the country and is "100% committed to the US."
In their blog post, Coinbase acknowledged the UAE's emergence as a leader in the Web3 ecosystem, making it an attractive investment location.
The region is standing-out as a leader in the development of a Web3 ecosystem, making it an attractive location to consider investing in. The vacuum created by other notable jurisdictions means that international counterparts, such as the UAE, are racing to fill the regulatory gap.
With the UAE's growing role in the crypto landscape, it will be interesting to see how Coinbase's plans unfold.
