Alpaca ADGM in-principle approval: what it means
What changed
Alpaca's Middle East entity, Alpaca Clearing & Custody ME Ltd (Alpaca Middle East), has received in-principle approval from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM).
The approval relates to its application for a Financial Services Permission. If granted, that permission would allow brokerage services and virtual asset custody within the scope the FSRA authorises.
This is not a licence. The in-principle approval does not authorise Alpaca to conduct regulated activities in or from ADGM.
Any launch depends on meeting the regulator's requirements and receiving the full permission.
Who it affects
Alpaca says it already works with financial institutions and FinTech platforms across the Middle East, supporting digital investing, savings and brokerage.
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Alpaca describes its technology as providing access to traditional and on-chain asset classes. It says it supports more than 15 million brokerage accounts across hundreds of FinTech companies and financial institutions in more than 50 countries, and has raised $400m in funding.
Alpaca already has a regulatory presence in the US, UK, Europe, Japan, India and The Bahamas. The UAE is described as the latest step in a strategy of building regulated brokerage infrastructure in international markets.
What to do
The in-principle approval does not authorise Alpaca to conduct regulated activities in or from ADGM, and any launch remains conditional on meeting the regulator's requirements and receiving the full permission.
Alpaca Middle East CEO Hatem ElAraby called a regulated presence in Abu Dhabi "an important step in building our long-term presence in the Middle East."
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