Odaily Planet Daily reports that Deepa Raja Carbon, Managing Director and Vice Chairman of the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), stated that after the turbulence in the virtual asset industry, people are seeking clear regulations, which is why international exchanges are developing their businesses in Dubai. Hong Kong and Dubai share very similar DNA; while the regulation of virtual assets does not need to be uniform across regions, coordination between regulatory bodies is crucial, as many scams involving virtual assets do not occur in a single region. Dubai and Hong Kong’s regulatory agencies are also closely connected, appreciating the way Hong Kong handles regulatory issues. As long as transactions or businesses are suitable for development in the region, opportunities for mutual communication will be considered. Deepa Raja Carbon pointed out that virtual asset exchanges applying for licenses in Dubai do so not only to serve Dubai but also to seek markets worldwide that lack clear regulations. Exchanges cannot grow in unregulated markets, and Dubai’s regulation is sufficiently safe to provide services for bilateral transactions. She mentioned that after the industry experienced an unregulated era in 2021, exchanges applying for licenses in Dubai are seeking regulation to protect their own and investors' interests. Initially, these exchanges only served qualified investors in traditional finance; once VARA granted licenses, they could serve retail investors, expanding market coverage. Dubai recently introduced new regulations for market promotion, and Deepa Raja Carbon explained that the development of virtual assets is changing rapidly. VARA has spent two years developing its regulatory framework and intends to further expand its scale in the future. She added that regulation should not only inform companies what they can and cannot do but also advise the market on what to pay attention to. The newly launched market promotion regulatory framework is extremely strict. Additionally, VARA is actively engaged in virtual asset education, including collaborations with universities, hoping to increase Dubai citizens' understanding of virtual assets. She further stated that VARA's next step is to establish international connections with other governments more swiftly to ensure that licensed entities can meet the needs of other markets, and that local markets do not face the risk of being unregulated. Moreover, each market has different issues that need to be addressed. VARA will actively engage with different industries in unregulated areas such as Web3, AI, and NFT gaming to avoid a repeat of the virtual asset industry's past. For instance, they will closely collaborate with the AI sector to coordinate regulatory efforts among all parties. Regarding the possibility of achieving 'global rules,' she believes that different countries or regions have their own priorities. What VARA is attempting to do is establish a set of standardized rules for the world, which countries can then modify according to their own needs. (Ming Pao)