Cryptocurrency payments are becoming increasingly popular as the use of this new asset class becomes more entrenched in the traditional sectors. Most notably now, virtual asset owners are able to buy real estate properties using cryptocurrency.
Most recently, the Dubai-based real estate firm Fäm Properties will be allowing its clients to purchase or invest in properties in the UAE thanks to a partnership with popular cryptocurrency exchange Huobi.
The news was reported on Sunday by local Dubai news media ZAWYA. According to the report, the new partnership will allow Fäm Properties clients to spend their assets including Bitcoin [BTC], Ethereum [ETH], Ripple [XRP] and some other leading crypto assets among them some stablecoins.
Singapore-based Huobi has also offices in Dubai, Hong Kong, the United States, and Japan.
The Dubai-based office supports trades in OTC markets allowing large investors and traders to buy and sell large amounts of cryptocurrencies without using an order book.
The Huobi OTC supports fiat currencies for the local UAE Dirham, US Dollars, British Pounds and Euros with more fiat currencies to be supported soon.
The new partnership will thus provide services such as the conversion of the client payments which will be made in cryptocurrency to fiat through the Huobi OTC desk.
The crypto exchange is licensed in Dubai by the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) and using its license provisions, will be allowed to ensure that clients’ payments in cryptocurrency are compliant with AML and KYC laws.
“If someone wants to buy property and use crypto as a payment currency, then we will help facilitate that transaction and sell their cryptocurrency and make the payment to Fäm in fiat currency,” Huobi OTC’s Mohit Davar told ZAWYA.
In a statement made by the exchange, Davar said that:
“Cryptocurrencies are reshaping the payment options for the real estate industry. Huobi has the liquidity and the resources to be able to meet the customer’s demands and provide a seamless experience,” adding that “In this era of digital financial engagement, we are glad to have partnered with UAE’s leading real estate agency Fäm Properties to meet their client’s aspirations.”
Speaking for Fäm Properties, Feras Al Msaddi, the agency’s chief executive said in a statement that “Cryptocurrencies are becoming an increasingly popular payment method, across all world-class cities, and this added choice will increase our property transactions and bring more value to the real estate market here.”
Fäm Properties was recently honored by the Dubai Land Department for its impressive achievement in terms of sales over the last decade. The agency sold more than AED 10 billion worth of property in the UAE.
The partnership with Huobi is meant to make it easier for investors to invest in Dubai as well as attracting a new kind of client given the recent surge of crypto billionaires across the world.
“Over the past 12 years, Fäm Properties has built its reputation on absolute integrity and trust. Hence, we have selectively partnered with Huobi – one of the largest and preferred digital assets exchange provider in the world,” Al Msaddi said. ” This partnership will provide our clients with immense opportunity and ease of investing in prime locations in the UAE.”
