Ant International Gains Two Key Licences from UAE Central Bank

Ant International has secured regulatory clearance from the Central Bank of the UAE to expand its financial services footprint in the Emirates.

The company obtained a Retail Payment Services and Card Schemes Category II licence alongside a Stored Value Facilities licence, both granted by the CBUAE.

These approvals position the fintech to deliver merchant acquiring and cross-border payment solutions directly to UAE businesses and consumers.

The retail payment licence allows Antom, Ant International's merchant-focused division, to offer acquiring services throughout the UAE.

Antom's platform connects merchants with over 300 payment methods, facilitating transactions from consumers in more than 200 markets using over 140 currencies.

Once operational, UAE retailers will be able to process payments from both domestic shoppers and international visitors across physical stores and digital storefronts.

The stored value licence supports WorldFirst, Ant International's global account service, in establishing UAE operations.

WorldFirst delivers international payment processing, collections, currency exchange, and treasury tools through a unified account interface.

The platform has served more than 1.6 million customers and handles transactions spanning over 210 countries and regions in more than 100 currencies.

With the new licence, WorldFirst can provide digital cross-border financial services directly to UAE-based clients.

Leiming Chen, chief sustainability officer and senior vice-president at Ant International, described the licences as a pivotal step in supporting the UAE's fintech sector.

The RPSCS and SVF licences mark a crucial milestone in Ant International's efforts to support the UAE's fintech ecosystem, aligning with the nation's 'We are UAE 2031' digitalisation and fintech strategy, Chen said.

In accordance with the applicable CBUAE regulatory framework, we look forward to launching AI-powered global payment and account solutions to make cross-border payments and financial management more accessible, he added.

Ant International already maintains a presence in the UAE through Alipay+, its cross-border mobile payment gateway.

Through partnerships with locally licensed banks and acquirers, UAE merchants currently accept payments from users of international digital wallets. The company noted those operations function independently from the newly approved licences.

The UAE regulatory clearances follow Ant International's receipt of a Payment Institution licence from the Central Bank of Brazil in the previous month.