The United Arab Emirates continues to carve out a leadership role in digital finance, and its latest move gives stablecoins an even larger stage.
Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) has widened the list of approved tokens operating inside its regulated framework — this time expanding the reach of Tether’s USDT across multiple new blockchain networks.
Key Takeaways
Abu Dhabi expanded USDT’s regulatory approval across nine additional blockchains.
The move follows similar recognition for Ripple’s stablecoin and full Binance licensing.
Tether sees the decision as proof of the UAE’s regulatory leadership.
ADGM is positioning itself as a global infrastructure hub for supervised crypto activity.
Instead of granting a generic listing, ADGM has classified USDT as an Accepted Fiat-Referenced Token — a designation that allows regulated firms inside the financial zone to actually deploy the asset in supervised activities, ranging from settlement to asset servicing.
The most important shift is not a single chain-based endorsement, but the fact that USDT can now be used inside ADGM on networks including Aptos, Celo, Cosmos, Near, Polkadot, TRON, Tezos, Kaia and TON. This extends what was previously a narrower set of permissions limited to Ethereum, Solana and Avalanche.
The Bigger Story: A Race for Institutional Stablecoin Presence
The development arrives just weeks after Ripple’s RLUSD received its own recognition inside ADGM — an indication that UAE regulators are onboarding competing stablecoins rather than favoring one issuer. Crypto exchanges are also being woven into this regulatory build-out: Binance became the first major platform to receive complete trading, custody and clearing authorization under the same regime.
Taken together, these moves point to a strategy where ADGM is positioning itself not as a sandbox, but as an operating hub where global players are expected to plug into oversight and compliance frameworks.
Tether Leans Into the UAE’s Regulatory Identity
Speaking about the approval, Tether chief executive Paolo Ardoino emphasized that the UAE has emerged as one of the few jurisdictions offering a working template for digital asset regulation. He also framed the decision as recognition of USDT’s role within international settlement markets and as a gateway for financial inclusion — messaging that aligns closely with Abu Dhabi’s positioning.
From Tether’s perspective, the UAE upgrade enhances network interoperability, allowing USDT to move between decentralized applications and institutional systems without the usual fragmentation issues.
ADGM’s Strategy Is Becoming Clear
The widening scope of regulated stablecoins and exchange platforms signals that Abu Dhabi wants to host infrastructure, not speculation. By inviting issuers, liquidity providers and trading venues into supervised models, the emirate aims to present itself as a destination for credible crypto finance — and a potential bridge between global capital and blockchain-based settlement rails.
In that sense, Tether’s expanded network footprint inside ADGM is not simply product coverage — it is one more piece of an architecture the UAE is actively constructing.
