Following the launch of the Dubai Metaverse Strategy at the Dubai Metaverse Assembly, the UAE government is formulating draft regulations for the metaverse. The government noted that regulations around privacy and data protection, cybersecurity, digital identity, digital inclusion, tokenisation, interoperability, and governance, are of importance. Interoperability and safety were identified as existing bottlenecks for metaverse development.
Financial sector regulators are likely to lead when it comes to the creation of metaverse policies and regulations. The Dubai International Financial Centre is drafting metaverse guidelines in consultation with the UAE’s Central Bank and Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority is working on the testing and validation of use cases, as well as the design and development of payment mechanisms.
The UAE government concluded that regulations for a new metaverse world order, would require regulators to wear a “referee’s” hat and move away from a gatekeeper’s mindset, and that collaboration between regulators is key to ensure harmonised regulations that support an interoperable metaverse. Lastly a multistakeholder approach is needed to ensure a “Responsible Metaverse” underpinning fundamental values of protection and safety, financial stability, accountability, and fairness.
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