Abu Dhabi

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Recognizing new realities in decentralization, the regulations aim to provide market players with governance flexibility within distributed ledger technology foundations.

By Stuart Davis, Brian Meenagh, Andrew Moyle, and Ksenia Koroleva

On October 2, 2023, the Board of Directors of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), a financial free zone in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), enacted the Distributed Ledger Technology Foundations Regulations 2023 (Regulations). The Regulations were published on November 1, 2023.

Latham & Watkins has advised ADGM in drafting the Regulations. The Regulations were developed following extensive benchmarking across a number of peer jurisdictions and incorporate stakeholder feedback from ADGM’s April 2023 consultation paper. The adoption of the Regulations is part of the strategy to promote ADGM as a global center for digital assets.

The Regulations recognize the suitability of common law foundation structures for projects related to digital assets, and aim to allow maximum flexibility for the sector with respect to governance.

Abu Dhabi Metro and Rail procurementAbu Dhabi’s Department of Transport has recently announced that it is pressing ahead with the procurement of the first phase of its metro and light rail project, representing not only a significant step in the development of the Emirate’s critical infrastructure, but also marking a renewed confidence and welcome return of the infrastructure development market in Abu Dhabi after several years of relatively subdued activity.

What’s planned?

The first phase will comprise a metro line, two light rail lines and…