Zodia Markets Achieves Abu Dhabi Crypto Licence, Boosts UAE Operations

Zodia Markets, supported by Standard Chartered, has been given a new operating license by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM). Thanks to this license, the platform can now operate a crypto brokerage.

Zodia Markets Aims To Grow In Major Financial Hubs Worldwide

Ayad Butt, the Senior Executive Officer for Zodia’s UAE branch, noted that digital asset use is growing quickly in Africa and the Middle East (AME). He added that this makes it the perfect time for the company to expand its footprint in the region while showing its promise to develop in important financial hubs worldwide.

He also shared that Zodia is planning to create a trading and innovation center within the ADGM framework to provide services to markets worldwide.

Zodia Markets offers over-the-counter (OTC) trading services, mainly for institutions. It handles more than 50 digital assets and over 20 fiat currencies.

Alongside its UAE branch, the crypto platform is also managed by three other branches in Jersey, the United Kingdom, and Ireland. All the branches provide the same digital asset services to clients. Interestingly, many other crypto firms have also been approved by the Abu Dhabi regulator. Names like Binance, Paxos, and eToro have all received licenses from the ADGM in the past few years.

Arvind Ramamurthy, ADGM’s Chief Market Development Officer stated that the strong regulatory setup at ADGM is built to help companies like Zodia Markets. It will ensure their clients enjoy the highest levels of safety, trust, and governance.

Zodia Acquired Elwood Technologies’ OTC Trading Business

A few months ago, Zodia Markets took over the Jersey-based OTC trading business of Elwood Technologies.

The purchase of Elwood Capital Management (ECM) is another step in Zodia Markets’ plan to create a complete digital asset business.

Usman Ahmad, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Zodia Markets said this acquisition is an important step to grow the firm’s services and reach. He added that it will help the company expand faster and improve its product capabilities.

Ahmad further explained that taking over a successful and deep-rooted business with a similar focus on regulation lets Zodia Markets give more options to its new clients and more value to the current ones.

For Elwood, the sale represents a shift to focus on its high-level SaaS products and services, such as execution management, risk management, and portfolio management,

Chris Lawn, the Chief Executive Officer of Elwood noted that the sale of the firm’s OTC trading business supports Elwood’s plan to develop a top-notch EMS and PMS software platform.

It lets the team put all their effort into the SaaS business. In line with this vision, Elwood has been working hard on its software platform and has recently finished building and integrating its new PMS with advanced features.

After the deal is completed, the purchased branch will be renamed Zodia Markets Jersey Ltd. The terms of the deal were not shared.