The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is set to launch its Digital Dirham, a central bank digital currency (CBDC), for retail purposes by late 2025.
As per the report from Khaleej Times, he Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) will launch the Digital Dirham in the fourth quarter of 2025. The move adds the United Arab Emirates to the growing number of countries investigating central bank-backed digital currencies.
The digital currency will be adopted in addition to cash and made available through fintech companies, exchange houses, and banks. It will accommodate multi-party payments and instant settlement using high-security, tokenization, and smart contracts.
CBUAE has also built an integrated Digital Dirham platform and wallet, which will enable transactions at the retail, wholesale, and cross-border levels. This follows a recent rebranding of the Digital Dirham, with its first letter now serving as its international symbol.
The UAE first moved toward digital currency in June 2024 when it introduced regulations for dirham-backed stablecoins, allowing private firms like Tether to issue AED-pegged tokens. However, the Digital Dirham is different—it is fully backed by the government, ensuring stronger security, oversight, and monetary control compared to privately issued stablecoins.
The UAE has developed a Digital Dirham wallet and platform to go along with the new currency, which will make it easier to make payments both domestically and internationally. As part of a rebranding effort, the digital currency’s symbol has also been updated.
The UAE also takes part in global CBDC initiatives, such as the Aber project, which is a joint venture with Saudi Arabia to test digital currency-based cross-border payments.
Currently, the UAE is testing and developing its Digital Dirham, joining countries like China, Russia, Sweden, Korea, Brazil, and the UK, which are also piloting their own CBDCs. The European Central Bank is similarly running a multi-year trial for a Digital Euro.
