According to Cointelegraph, Ras Al Khaimah ruler Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi inaugurated the new RAK Digital Assets Oasis (RAK DAO) on October 19. The economic free zone is dedicated to supporting companies involved in digital and virtual assets, blockchain, Web3, and artificial intelligence (AI). The free zone will cater to digital and virtual asset service providers in emerging technologies, such as the metaverse, blockchain, utility tokens, virtual asset wallets, nonfungible tokens (NFTs), decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), decentralized applications (DApps), and other Web3-related businesses.
RAK DAO and its ecosystem partners will also run grant programs and provide specialized support in various areas of technology, marketing, and business development. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) CEO Maryam Buti Al Suwaidi and RAK DAO chief executive Sameer Al Ansari. Ras Al Khaimah is turning to the virtual assets sector to diversify its economy away from traditional avenues such as tourism.
RAK DAO joins the UAEâs list of Web3-friendly free zones, including the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC), and Dubai International Financial Centre, among others. Sheikh Saud issued Law No 2 of 2023, which decrees the establishment of RAK DAO as part of its economic diversification efforts and attempts to attract global players. The legislation grants the free zone financial, administrative, and legislative independence, allowing it to function as a purpose-built, innovation-enabling free zone for the virtual assets sector. RAK DAO has since added several partners to help grow its ecosystem, including the HBAR Foundation, local bank RAKBANK, and Romanian AI firm Humans.ai.
