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Animoca Brands said in a statement that its subsidiary Animoca Asset Management (AD) Limited has received a Financial Services Permission from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of the Abu Dhabi Global Market. The permission authorises the unit to carry out the regulated activity of managing a collective investment fund in or from the ADGM. It follows an in-principle approval granted in November 2025 and became effective on October 13, according to the FSRA public register. The announcement provided no details on any specific fund, target size, investor base or launch timetable.
In the statement, Minh Do, senior executive officer and director of the subsidiary, called the permission a critical milestone for the company’s operations in the Middle East. “Securing the Financial Services Permission from ADGM’s FSRA is a critical milestone for our operations in the Middle East,” Do said. “It allows us to manage collective investment funds under a robust regulatory framework, bridging institutional capital with the future of the agentic web and digital assets.” The approval supports Animoca Brands’ wider focus on institutional blockchain infrastructure, tokenized assets and combining agentic AI with Web3 environments.
Arvind Ramamurthy, ADGM’s chief market development officer, welcomed the development in remarks included in the company’s release. He stated that the move into fund management would strengthen links between institutional capital and digital assets in the jurisdiction. ADGM figures show the number of fund and asset managers in the free zone rose 23 percent year on year to 190 by the end of June. The growth forms part of the centre’s push to expand regulated activity in digital assets and traditional finance integration.
The ADGM permission marks the second regulatory licence Animoca Brands has secured in the UAE during 2026. The company obtained a virtual assets broker-dealer and management services licence from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority in February, according to earlier company disclosures. Both approvals target institutional and qualified investors rather than retail clients, with separate custodians required to hold assets under the ADGM framework.
Animoca Brands suspended talks on a planned Nasdaq listing through a reverse merger with Currenc Group in September, the company said at the time. The decision followed a non-binding term sheet signed in November 2025 that would have given Animoca shareholders around 95 percent ownership of the combined listed entity. Executives noted that prevailing market conditions and timelines had prompted the mutual pause while the firm continued to pursue a public listing through other routes.
Founded in Hong Kong, Animoca Brands has built a portfolio of more than 400 investments in Web3, gaming, decentralized finance and related technologies. The company maintains a focus on advancing digital property rights through blockchain and artificial intelligence applications. Its latest regulatory step in Abu Dhabi forms part of a strategy to connect traditional institutional capital with these digital ecosystems under licensed structures.
