The Solana blockchain launched a three-week gathering of Web3 specialists in Dubai, which aims to attract hundreds of international start-ups and their developers to help the California-based platform establish a local presence and role in the UAE's national crypto strategy.
The event from October 6 to 26 kicked off last week with the gathering of about 450 visitors in its first week. They attended workshops held at an enclave of six villas in Al Barsha. Thirty-five guests stayed overnight at the venue where there are five private swimming pools, a fitness centre, and a cat room to de-stress from day-long computing.
Alex Scott, leader of Solana's Superteam, said while global cryptocurrency and other Web3 companies have set up in the UAE, Solana is one of the few blockchains – or decentralised ledgers – establishing a strategic and long-term occupancy.
“Solana's Superteam Founders' Villa is the only event of its kind and scale in the UAE,” he told The National. The previous event in February brought in $100,000 in deals, and four new companies were set up in Dubai, while five founders relocated.
The momentum is growing, according to Solana, which expects to double the number of start-up founders in attendance from last year and who are considering a base in Dubai. About 50 founders attended February's gathering, excluding each company's team of developers.
“We're pioneering this approach of bringing global blockchain talent together for an extended period to collaborate and build in the heart of Dubai,” Mr Scott added.
What they are building, he said, is their Web3 businesses on Solana's blockchain and also in the UAE.
The gathering is more than just a meet-up opportunity for techies, he added. It is an chance for founders and developers to learn how to operate within the UAE government’s framework.
The Dubai Department of Economy & Tourism (DET) and Abu Dhabi Global Markets (ADGM) had representatives at the first week of the event and they met with the incoming talent to discuss their needs.
Mert Mumtaz, co-founder and chief executive of Helius, is one of them, and his company is the largest developer platform on Solana. He said this momentum is a catalyst for building “the new internet” at the heart of the UAE’s fast-growing industry.
“The opportunity to collaborate with talented and hungry minds while having direct access to government officials and regulatory insights is something I've never seen before,” said Mr Mumtaz, who moved his business from Toronto to Dubai in September.
It’s “not only attracting talent to the UAE but also positioning Solana and its builders at the forefront of the coming stablecoin revolution”, he said.
Global attraction
The UAE Central Bank in June announced its plans to establish a clear operational framework next year with its anticipated launch of a dirham-backed stablecoin.
Tether – the issuer of the world's largest stablecoin – said in August it plans to launch the dirham-pegged stablecoin in partnership with Abu Dhabi-based Phoenix Group and Green Acorn Investments.
The coin issuance is expected to push the use of cryptocurrencies more into the mainstream. The framework would allow businesses in the Emirates to accept the UAE stablecoin for goods and services including instant payments for rent, utilities, or large purchases, and reducing remittance costs for sending money abroad.
This also means that major cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ether, along with US dollar-backed stablecoins such as Tether or Binance USD, will not be allowed for these types of payments in the Gulf state.
The UAE's proactive approach to crypto regulation is yielding results. Henley and Partners, a London-based investment migration consultancy, reported in August that the UAE now ranks third globally in crypto adoption, behind Singapore and Hong Kong (China).
The Henley Crypto Adoption Index 2024 cites several factors contributing to this high ranking, including strong government support, a thriving start-up scene, and a highly digitalised and wealthy population.
This aligns with earlier data from crypto payments service provider Triple-A, which in 2023 ranked the UAE as the No 1 country by crypto ownership, with 30.4 per cent of the population (about three million) owning digital assets.
Solana envisions the future dirham-based stablecoin as a way to acquire new users in the Middle East and also existing ones who can transact with UAE companies.
Entering at this stage in the UAE’s stablecoin planning, said Mr Scott, is helping Solana earn “a first-mover advantage”. This involves boosting the adoption of blockchain technology with traditional finance, including the use of the UAE stablecoin to pay for a utility bill on a bank app, or other expenses.
“Imagine earning a dirham-denominated yield on a Decentralised Finance (DeFi) platform like Flash Trade, a UAE company, and using that to pay your rent in Abu Dhabi,” said Mr Scott. A dirham-backed stablecoin would enable this and many other innovative use cases, he added.
Victoria Wells, a Dubai-based crypto lawyer, said such ideas are opening the doors for more enabling government policies to make such payment systems a mainstream reality one day.
“As stablecoins proliferate, we're seeing increased regulatory attention, particularly in regions like MENA,” she told The National.
This type of co-operative guidance and ecosystem building from global platforms such as Solana is communicating to virtual asset service providers that the Middle East “is the region to be”, she said,
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A4 S4 TDI
Engine: 3.0-litre V6 turbo diesel
Transmission: eight-speed PDK automatic
Power: 350bhp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: Dh165,000 (estimate)
On sale: First Q 2020
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
All about the Sevens
Cape Town Sevens on Saturday and Sunday: Pools A – South Africa, Kenya, France, Russia; B – New Zealand, Australia, Spain, United States; C – England, Scotland, Argentina, Uganda; D – Fiji, Samoa, Canada, Wales
HSBC World Sevens Series standing after first leg in Dubai 1 South Africa; 2 New Zealand; 3 England; 4 Fiji; 5 Australia; 6 Samoa; 7 Kenya; 8 Scotland; 9 France; 10 Spain; 11 Argentina; 12 Canada; 13 Wales; 14 Uganda; 15 United States; 16 Russia
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Skoda Superb Specs
Engine: 2-litre TSI petrol
Power: 190hp
Torque: 320Nm
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Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
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Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
The Vile
Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah
Director: Majid Al Ansari
Rating: 4/5
Company profile
Name: Tratok Portal
Founded: 2017
Based: UAE
Sector: Travel & tourism
Size: 36 employees
Funding: Privately funded
Sleep Well Beast
The National
4AD
U19 WORLD CUP, WEST INDIES
UAE group fixtures (all in St Kitts)
Saturday 15 January: v Canada
Thursday 20 January: v England
Saturday 22 January: v Bangladesh
UAE squad
Alishan Sharafu (captain), Shival Bawa, Jash Giyanani, Sailles Jaishankar, Nilansh Keswani, Aayan Khan, Punya Mehra, Ali Naseer, Ronak Panoly, Dhruv Parashar, Vinayak Raghavan, Soorya Sathish, Aryansh Sharma, Adithya Shetty, Kai Smith
Biog
Mr Kandhari is legally authorised to conduct marriages in the gurdwara
He has officiated weddings of Sikhs and people of different faiths from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Russia, the US and Canada
Father of two sons, grandfather of six
Plays golf once a week
Enjoys trying new holiday destinations with his wife and family
Walks for an hour every morning
Completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Loyola College, Chennai, India
2019 is a milestone because he completes 50 years in business
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: SimpliFi
Started: August 2021
Founder: Ali Sattar
Based: UAE
Industry: Finance, technology
Investors: 4DX, Rally Cap, Raed, Global Founders, Sukna and individuals
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Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
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Know your cyber adversaries
Cryptojacking: Compromises a device or network to mine cryptocurrencies without an organisation's knowledge.
Distributed denial-of-service: Floods systems, servers or networks with information, effectively blocking them.
Man-in-the-middle attack: Intercepts two-way communication to obtain information, spy on participants or alter the outcome.
Malware: Installs itself in a network when a user clicks on a compromised link or email attachment.
Phishing: Aims to secure personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers.
Ransomware: Encrypts user data, denying access and demands a payment to decrypt it.
Spyware: Collects information without the user's knowledge, which is then passed on to bad actors.
Trojans: Create a backdoor into systems, which becomes a point of entry for an attack.
Viruses: Infect applications in a system and replicate themselves as they go, just like their biological counterparts.
Worms: Send copies of themselves to other users or contacts. They don't attack the system, but they overload it.
Zero-day exploit: Exploits a vulnerability in software before a fix is found.
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German plea
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the German parliament that. Russia had erected a new wall across Europe.
"It's not a Berlin Wall -- it is a Wall in central Europe between freedom and bondage and this Wall is growing bigger with every bomb" dropped on Ukraine, Zelenskyy told MPs.
Mr Zelenskyy was applauded by MPs in the Bundestag as he addressed Chancellor Olaf Scholz directly.
"Dear Mr Scholz, tear down this Wall," he said, evoking US President Ronald Reagan's 1987 appeal to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate.
