The news is marked by the interest of major digital players in the metaverse. New players are appearing, like Decentraland. The big traditional players, the GAFAM, are looking into the subject. For example, Facebook has become Meta, and Amazon is starting to recruit to develop a virtual reality headset. Faced with this pivot of some private sector companies towards the metaverse, the public sector is also starting to take an interest in it. In France, Valérie Pécresse “lost in the metaverse”. Conversely, Dubai is positioned as the most advanced city in its adoption. Indeed, it is the first city to invest in The SandBox metaverse. Why is a city such as Dubai interested in Web3?
Dubai makes history
This is the first time a city has invested in the metaverse. On Twitter, the crown prince Hamdan Bin Mohammed said: “ Today, the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) made its debut in the metaverse with the installation of its headquarters in the dynamic virtual world of “The Sandbox”. This initiative creates a new model for managing and developing Dubai’s government operations. »
The Dubai virtual assets regulatory authority has announced that it has entered the metaverse with the creation of its HQ Metaverse. This makes it the first regulatory authority to be present in the emerging digital space. The Dubai MetaHQ will use The Sandbox platform (SAND). The latter, supported by the Japanese investment conglomerate SoftBank, is an application based on the Ethereum blockchain. It allows users to create, sell and buy digital assets. Concretely, this “ land “in The Sandbox will be used in Dubai, which will be able to promote itself to Web3 companies there. It may make it possible to “facilitate” collaboration with digital service providers.
Why such an investment?
It is legitimate to ask how useful it is for a country to invest in the metaverse. The extension of the resources of the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) to a public without borders is part of Dubai’s strategy. The objective of this strategy is to create a prototype of a decentralized regulator model. It also aims to make it accessible to heads of government and industry, other authorities and virtual asset service providers in order to help shape the future digital economy. This initiative therefore symbolizes the beginning of a new era that will see the government of Dubai rely on modern innovations in order to develop the country and prepare its post-hydrocarbon economy. By investing in the metaverse, Dubai is positioning itself as a leading city in technological transformation and Web 3.0.
This ambition on the part of the Government is materialized by the adoption of a law last March, laying down a legal framework for cryptoassets. This law aims to protect investors, but also to attract crypto companies.
Recently Three Arrows Capital, a Venture Capital fund specializing in investments in cryptocurrency-related companies, decided to move its headquarters from Singapore to Dubai. In addition, the long-awaited fight between Floyd Mayweather and Don Moore will take place in Dubai. Tickets will be in the form of NFT. Very encouraging news for the crypto ecosystem and an increasing adoption!
Dubai wants to become a real capital of blockchain, cryptocurrency and Web 3.0. This investment in the metaverse is part of the government’s strategic perspective to make Dubai a hub for the cryptosphere.
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Student passionate about entrepreneurship and fascinated by the technologies behind cryptos! Yes, I am convinced that the two are intimately linked: blockchain and NFTs are revolutionizing many sectors and present unprecedented opportunities.
