The Dubai Financial Services Authority (“DFSA”) has restructured its crypto token regime, shifting the primary responsibility for token due diligence from the regulator to the market participants themselves. The updated rules, which came into force on 12 January 2026, replace the DFSA’s centralised list of “Recognised Crypto Tokens” with a new framework where authorised firms must conduct their own suitability assessments.
Under this decentralised model, firms (including banks, brokers, and trading platforms), are now required to generate and maintain their own “reasoned and documented” analysis for each token they wish to list or trade. The regulatory liability for a token’s admission now rests primarily with the DFSA -authorised firm. To guide this process, the DFSA has issued updated Supervisory Guidelines which mandate that firms evaluate key criteria, including a token’s regulatory status in other jurisdictions, its market integrity and liquidity, and the transparency of its governance and development team.
A significant exception to this new model applies to “Fiat Crypto Tokens” (such as stablecoins). Recognising their potential impact on the financial system, the DFSA retains exclusive authority to evaluate and approve these assets. The regulator will continue to maintain a specific list of recognised stablecoins and firms may not list or trade any such token without the DFSA’s explicit prior recognition.
Finally, the rulebook updates provide important clarity for the asset management sector. The new regime clarifies that funds or ETFs tracking broad, non-crypto indices (such as the Nasdaq 100) that may have incidental exposure to crypto-related equities are not required to apply the specific crypto-token assessment rules to those underlying holdings, streamlining the admission of mainstream investment products into the DIFC.