- Four-event programme brought together representatives from 683 companies, with more than 63% of attendees holding C-suite, founder or director-level roles
- Dubai Business Events, part of the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), supported cross-sector dialogue involving government, regulatory, academic and industry stakeholders
Dubai, UAE,August 2026: The REAL series, convened by the Dubai Blockchain Center (DBCC) concluded a four-event programme across Dubai that brought together more than 1,000 participants from 683 companies between April and July 2026. More than 63% of attendees held C-suite, founder or director-level roles.
Bringing together government entities, regulators, investors, innovators, academics and industry leaders, the series, supported by Dubai Business Events (DBE), part of the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), created a focused platform for dialogue on blockchain governance, capital deployment and the financial infrastructure supporting the region’s digital economy. It also reflected Dubai’s ability to convene specialised sectors through business events that contribute to knowledge exchange, partnership development and the growth of emerging industries.
Participants included representatives from the UAE Ministry of Economy and Tourism, the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), DET, Dubai Police, Dubai Police Academy, DMCC and the MENA Fintech Association, alongside a wider group of government, ecosystem, academic and industry partners.
H.E. Abdulaziz Al-Nuaimi, Assistant Undersecretary for Entrepreneurship and the Economic Affairs Regulatory Sector at the UAE Ministry of Economy and Tourism, said: “The UAE’s competitive advantage in the new economy is not defined by how quickly we adopt technology, but by how carefully we are building the architecture of trust around it. Through strong legislative and regulatory frameworks, and national institutions such as the Central Bank, VARA, the SCA, ADGM and DIFC, we are developing settlement infrastructure, programmable compliance, tokenised claims on real cash flows, and regulated stablecoins backed by sovereign-grade reserves, reinforcing the UAE’s position as a leading, trusted financial hub at regional and global levels.”
H.E. Al-Nuaimi added: “Within the framework of the national objective to double the digital economy’s contribution to UAE GDP to 19.4% by 2032, we are ensuring that the features and capabilities of this structure, from custody, settlement, identity and tokenisation to compliance, are not merely theoretical, but form an integrated digital system that is enforceable in UAE courts. Forums such as REAL help translate regulatory and policy intent into practical market understanding across financial infrastructure and regulation.”
Ahmed Al Khaja, CEO of Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment, part of DET, said: “Dubai’s ability to bring together global industries, talent and investment continues to drive the growth of specialised business ecosystems across the emirate. The REAL series reflected the increasing scale and maturity of Dubai’s blockchain and digital assets sector, connecting government entities, regulators, investors, innovators and industry leaders through a focused programme of institutional dialogue. Platforms such as REAL further reinforce Dubai’s position as a leading global destination for business events, while supporting the ambitions of the Dubai Economic Agenda, D33, to consolidate the city’s role at the forefront of innovation and the digital economy.”
Dr Marwan Alzarouni, CEO of Dubai Blockchain Center, said: “REAL was never just an event; it was a declaration carried across four events. The institutional layer of the blockchain economy has matured through market cycles and regulatory evolution, and what we saw across the series was the result: serious decision-makers, including fund managers, regulators, exchanges and sovereign allocators, meeting in Dubai not to speculate, but to build. At DBCC, we have always believed that blockchain’s real value lies in its infrastructure for trust and long-term adoption. REAL proved that Dubai is the city where that conviction becomes action.”
Belal Jassoma, Senior Director, Tech Ecosystems, DMCC, said: “REAL: The Comeback was a powerful reminder of Dubai’s role as a global meeting point for blockchain, digital assets and institutional innovation. We were proud to host this important dialogue at Uptown Tower and contribute to the UAE’s continued leadership in the digital economy. As home to one of the world’s most dynamic Web3 ecosystems, bringing together innovators, investors and institutions under one roof is exactly how DMCC continues to turn emerging technologies into commercial opportunities.”
The programme comprised four events held at different venues across the city: an opening roundtable at Daos Hub Dubai on 29 April; the flagship REAL: The Comeback at DMCC HQ, SO/ Hotel, Uptown Dubai, on 13 May; REAL Series: Event III at in 5 Dubai on 10 June; and a closing roundtable at Dubai Police Academy on 14 July. The final session examined the future of education in the new economy and the role of tokenisation in shaping future economic models.
REAL was established to present a trusted setting in which regulators, capital providers and technology builders could address shared priorities. Across closed-door roundtables and public discussions, the series covered regulatory frameworks, digital forensics and identity, real-world asset tokenisation, education in the new digital economy, institutional capital strategy, stablecoin infrastructure, and the intersection of artificial intelligence with the UAE’s evolving economy.
The format was designed to encourage practical discussion with roundtables holding 25 to 30 participants, enabling focused exchanges on custody, settlement, identity, tokenisation and compliance. Rotating the sessions across Daos Hub, DMCC HQ, in5 Dubai and Dubai Police Academy also reflected the collaborative approach of the programme’s institutional and ecosystem partners.
Across the four events, the programme engaged participants from crypto exchanges, industry associations, real-world asset platforms, investment firms, legal and compliance advisories, stablecoin issuers, free zones, government entities, banks and venture capital firms. The breadth of participation demonstrated the value of sustained, cross-sector dialogue as Dubai continues to strengthen its blockchain and digital assets ecosystem.
-About the REAL Series:
Convened by the Dubai Blockchain Center, REAL is an institutional coordination platform focused on blockchain governance, capital deployment and financial infrastructure in the Middle East. The 2026 series comprised four events held across Dubai between 29 April and 14 July.
29 April 2026: Opening roundtable at Daos Hub Dubai
13 May 2026: REAL: The Comeback at DMCC HQ, SO/ Hotel, Uptown Dubai
10 June 2026: REAL Series: Event III at in5 Dubai
14 July 2026: REAL Series closing roundtable at Dubai Police Academy
Government partners: UAE Ministry of Economy and Tourism; Dubai Business Events, part of the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism; Dubai Police; and Dubai Police Academy
Special regulatory partner: Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA)
Strategic ecosystem partners: DMCC; Daos Hub; MENA Fintech Association; Middle East Stablecoin Association (MESA); in5 Dubai; and D2A2
Academic partner: The British University in Dubai (BUID)
Media partners: Cointelegraph and Unlock Blockchain
Gold sponsors: USDU / Universal; OneAsset; Crypto.com; CoinW; Ledger Enterprise; Aether Funds; and KARM Legal
Silver sponsors: GCEX and BitDelta Group
About Dubai Business Events:
Dubai Business Events (DBE), the city’s official convention bureau and part of the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism, works to grow Dubai’s share of the international business events market. DBE engages with stakeholders worldwide to identify, bid for and secure business events, and supports organisers in planning and delivering meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions across the city. As a member of BestCities Global Alliance, DBE is committed to delivering exceptional experiences for the global business events community.
