DUBAI: The Dubai World Trade Centre will become a crypto zone and regulator for cryptocurrencies and other virtual assets, the Dubai Media Office said on Monday, part of efforts to attract new business as regional economic competition heats up.

The move by the DWTC to create a specialized zone for virtual assets — including digital assets, products, operators and exchanges — is part of a drive by Dubai to create new economic sectors, the statement said.

“Rigorous standards for investor protection, anti-money laundering, combating the financing of terrorism, compliance and crossborder deal flow tracing,” will be developed, it said.

In September, the UAE Securities and Commodities Authority and the Dubai World Trade Centre Authority agreed on a framework that allows the DWTCA to approve and license financial activities relating to crypto assets.

In October, another Dubai free-zone DIFC, Dubai’s state-owned financial free zone and the Middle East’s major finance centre, released the first part of a regulatory framework for digital tokens.