VARA and Securitize’s Tokenisation Deal: What It Means for Indian Founders Tokenising Assets in Dubai

On 3 September 2026, Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority and Securitize, a US-listed tokenisation platform, signed a memorandum of understanding to advance regulated tokenised markets in Dubai. For Indian founders who are thinking about tokenising property, funds, receivables or other assets from Dubai, the announcement raises obvious questions: Does this open a new route? Does it change the rules? And what do we still have to do under Indian law?

The short answer is that the deal is a framework for cooperation and not a licence or a new rulebook. This guide explains what the memorandum does and does not do, how Dubai already regulates tokenised assets, and the Indian-law checks that stay in place for founders and investors. UAE-law points should be confirmed with UAE counsel, because Halverton & Co. is an Indian law firm and does not advise on UAE law.

What the VARA and Securitize MoU is

VARA and Securitize announced the memorandum on 3 September 2026. Securitize describes itself as an institutional tokenisation platform and is listed in the US. The memorandum sets up a structure for continuing cooperation centred on knowledge sharing, ecosystem development and regulatory engagement within Dubai’s virtual asset sector (press release via Placera and Finviz; Cointelegraph; Unlock Blockchain).

Two features stand out. First, a memorandum of understanding records intent to cooperate and does not create binding obligations on the parties or on the market. Second, a VARA spokesperson was reported as saying that no specific projects would be announced at this stage (Cointelegraph; FOW). One analysis also notes that the arrangement does not make Securitize VARA’s infrastructure provider and does not replace Dubai’s regulatory framework (Unlock Blockchain).

The commercial signal is still useful. It shows that VARA is courting established tokenisation platforms and wants Dubai to be a base for regulated tokenised markets, alongside other initiatives such as the Dubai Land Department’s real-estate tokenisation pilot and VARA’s licensing of tokenisation platforms. VARA reportedly granted its 50th virtual asset service provider licence in July 2026 to a tokenisation platform (FOW; MENA Startup Digest). For founders, that means more infrastructure and more regulatory attention.

How Dubai already regulates tokenised assets

Dubai regulates virtual assets outside the DIFC through VARA, and tokenised real-world assets are dealt with in VARA’s issuance rules. VARA’s Asset-Referenced Virtual Asset, or ARVA, framework covers tokens that represent rights or claims over real-world assets, including property, income entitlements and indirect rights. Under the May 2025 updates to VARA’s Issuance Rulebook, real-world-asset tokens fall in Category 1, and regulated exchanges and broker-dealers in Dubai can distribute and list ARVA tokens (Unlock Blockchain; Linklaters).

The practical consequences are significant. Law-firm commentary says that issuing an ARVA from Dubai means the issuer needs a VARA licence and prior approval, that VARA approves each ARVA separately, and that approval can carry conditions. Typical structural elements include an issuer vehicle, legally segregated custody of the underlying asset or reserve, and a whitepaper that meets VARA’s disclosure requirements (Kayrouz & Associates; NeoLegal). Treat those descriptions as a guide and check the rulebook itself.

Overlap with other regulators is possible. VARA’s April 2026 guidance warned that a tokenised real-world asset that qualifies as a financial instrument may also fall under the federal Securities and Commodities Authority, and VARA’s perimeter excludes the DIFC, which is regulated by the DFSA. A tokenisation structure therefore starts with working out which regulator or regulators apply, and UAE counsel should lead on that.

What the MoU changes and what it doesn’t

It does not change who needs a licence. A person who issues tokens in Dubai or offers virtual asset services there still needs VARA authorisation, and a memorandum between VARA and a platform does not authorise anyone else. It does not give Securitize’s counterparties any status, and it does not relax the ARVA issuance requirements or the rules on marketing virtual assets.

What it may do is shape the market around you. If Securitize or similar platforms build tokenisation services in Dubai, founders will have more options to issue through an existing licensed platform than to build their own stack. That could reduce cost and time. But a platform route has its own legal questions: who is the issuer, who holds the underlying asset, what rights tokenholders actually have, and which entity’s licence covers which activity.

Be sceptical of marketing that treats the announcement as an endorsement. Statements to investors that a tokenised product is “VARA-backed” or “in partnership with VARA” would be misleading, and VARA has fined unlicensed operators for providing services and marketing in Dubai without a licence. Describe the licence and approval you actually hold, and describe the MoU, if at all, accurately.

The Indian-law checks for founders and investors

Indian law follows Indian residents and Indian users. An Indian-resident founder who invests in a Dubai issuing company or tokenisation platform is making an overseas investment, which must follow the Foreign Exchange Management (Overseas Investment) Rules, 2022, including restrictions on resident individuals investing in certain financial services activities and on round-tripping structures. Take advice before incorporating, because a tokenisation vehicle that looks like a financial services business may not be a permitted target for an individual’s direct investment.

Tax and disclosure follow too. Indian residents are taxed on worldwide income, so income from tokenised assets and gains on tokens are taxable in India, and if the tokens are virtual digital assets the 30% flat rate and no set-off of losses apply, although whether a token representing an enforceable interest in an underlying asset is a virtual digital asset is a genuinely open question. Foreign holdings must be disclosed in Schedule FA, and the Black Money Act applies to undisclosed foreign assets.

If the offering reaches users in India, additional layers apply: possible FIU-IND registration for platforms serving Indian users, the Indian rules on unregulated deposit and collective investment schemes if returns are promised, and the Liberalised Remittance Scheme for Indian residents buying tokens abroad, which banks scrutinise. Indian investors can lose out if founders ignore these points, so build them into the structure and the disclosure documents.

Indian founders should treat a tokenisation plan as three separate questions. First, what is the underlying asset, and does Indian law restrict how it may be transferred or fractionalised? Real estate, securities, receivables and commodities each sit under different rules, and India has no dedicated framework for tokenised real-world assets, so existing securities, property and contract law apply as they stand. Second, what is the token under UAE law: VARA’s issuance rulebook and the UAE Securities and Commodities Authority may both be relevant, and the DIFC sits under the DFSA. Third, who may buy it: offering tokens to investors in India raises securities-law and FEMA questions that a Dubai licence does not answer.

A non-binding memorandum between a regulator and a tokenisation platform is a signal of direction, not a route to approval. Founders should not describe it to investors or customers as an endorsement, and should not assume that any particular platform has been cleared to work with their asset. Ask each platform for its own licences, the specific permissions it holds and the jurisdictions in which it can offer the product.

Structuring, remedies and quick answers

A sensible approach has five steps. Decide what is being tokenised and what rights tokenholders get. Map the regulators, VARA, the SCA and the DFSA as applicable, with UAE counsel. Choose between issuing yourself and using a licensed platform. Build the Indian analysis in parallel: overseas investment, tax residence, disclosure and investor-facing rules. And document everything, because VARA, banks and investors will ask. If you have already issued tokens without the right approvals, take advice quickly: regularisation with VARA and, on the Indian side, correction of foreign exchange filings and tax returns are far cheaper before an enquiry than after. If a counterparty or platform fails, claims will usually be brought in Dubai, and a money judgment from the Dubai or DIFC courts can be executed in India, which is a useful backstop for Indian investors.

Related reading: tokenized real estate in Dubai for Indian investors, DMCC and VARA licences compared, launching a token from Dubai with Indian investors, VARA licence, Indian users and FIU-IND registration, VARA and UAE corporate tax for Indian-founded firms, Dubai vs GIFT City for crypto and Web3 and the UAE FIU and VARA agreement; also VARA token issuance guidance 2026 and ADGM tokenisation options for Indian founders.

Quick answers

What did VARA and Securitize actually sign?

A non-binding memorandum of understanding on 3 September 2026 to cooperate on knowledge sharing, ecosystem development and regulatory engagement in regulated tokenisation. No specific projects were announced.

Does the MoU let me tokenise assets in Dubai without a licence?

No. Issuing asset-referenced virtual assets in Dubai requires a VARA licence and approval of the token, and the MoU does not change that.

What Indian rules apply if I tokenise assets from Dubai?

Overseas investment rules under FEMA for resident founders and investors, Indian tax on income and gains, Schedule FA disclosure, and, where Indian users are served, FIU-IND and scheme-related laws.

Does the MoU mean Securitize is approved to tokenise assets in Dubai?

No. Reports describe it as a non-binding memorandum on knowledge sharing, ecosystem development and regulatory engagement, with no specific projects announced. Ask any platform for its own licences and permissions.

Can an Indian founder tokenise Indian real estate through a Dubai platform?

Not safely on the strength of the MoU. India has no dedicated framework for tokenised real-world assets, so property, securities, FEMA and tax law apply as they stand, and a Dubai licence does not answer those questions.

Final word

Halverton & Co. is an Indian law firm advising NRIs, founders, investors and businesses in Dubai and across the UAE on Indian law, including overseas investment structuring, tokenisation, FEMA compliance and tax for Indian founders in Dubai. We practise in Jharkhand, Maharashtra and before the Supreme Court of India, and work alongside UAE-licensed counsel, who advise on UAE law. Halverton & Co.: Where tech needs law! If you have a question about Indian law, write to us at office@halvertonandco.com, or get in touch.

This article reflects developments reported up to late October 2026. It is for general information only, is not legal advice, and does not create an advocate-client relationship. Halverton & Co. is an Indian law firm and does not advise on UAE law; UAE-law points should be confirmed with UAE-licensed counsel.