Dubai Duty Free Claims Regional First with Crypto.com Pay Launch

Dubai Duty Free has begun accepting Crypto.com Pay at its stores in Dubai International Airport and Al Maktoum International Airport, extending the payment method to its online checkout as well.

Customers using the service do not transfer cryptocurrency directly to Dubai Duty Free. Instead, they authorize a payment through their Crypto.com account, while Crypto.com’s payment infrastructure processes the transaction and settles the merchant’s side in UAE dirhams. This structure reduces the retailer’s direct exposure to the price fluctuations commonly associated with digital assets.

At physical checkouts, Dubai Duty Free’s point-of-sale system generates a QR code showing the purchase amount in dirhams. The customer scans the code through the Crypto.com application and approves the transaction from their wallet. Online shoppers follow a similar process, while customers purchasing through a mobile device are redirected to the Crypto.com app before returning to Dubai Duty Free’s checkout.

Crypto.com and Dubai Duty Free described the rollout as the first introduction of a regulated crypto-linked payment option by an airport retailer in the Middle East.

Regulation Shapes the Payment Model

The launch follows Crypto.com’s receipt of a Stored Value Facilities license from the Central Bank of the UAE. The company said in a May 2026 licensing announcement that its UAE entity, Foris DAX Middle East FZE, had become the first virtual asset service provider in the country to obtain that type of license.

A Stored Value Facility is broadly defined by the Central Bank of the UAE as a facility through which a customer provides money or another form of monetary value to an issuer in exchange for stored value that can be used for payments.

Under the Dubai Duty Free arrangement, Crypto.com’s regulated infrastructure connects the customer’s account with the retailer’s payment system. Dubai Duty Free receives settlement in UAE dirhams rather than cryptocurrency, while customers authorize purchases through Crypto.com Pay. The structure allows the retailer to offer a crypto-linked payment option without receiving digital assets directly.

Crypto.com Pay has also entered another part of Dubai’s travel sector. Emirates introduced Crypto.com Pay in July for eligible UAE residents booking flights through its website and mobile app, with fares priced and settled in UAE dirhams. The two launches extend the payment option across both air travel and airport retail within Dubai’s aviation ecosystem.

Partnership Moves from Planning to Deployment

The launch follows a memorandum of understanding signed by Dubai Duty Free and Crypto.com in July 2025. The agreement covered the exploration of blockchain-supported payments and other digital initiatives across the retailer’s operations.

Dubai Duty Free brings significant transaction volume to the project. The retailer recorded more than 21 million sales transactions in 2025 and generated revenue of approximately $2.38 billion (AED 8.68 billion). Online sales represented about $62.6 million (AED 230.1 million), or 2.65% of its annual total.

The rollout also fits within Dubai’s broader effort to reduce the use of cash across public- and private-sector transactions. The Dubai Cashless Strategy, introduced in October 2024, aims to increase the share of cashless transactions to 90% by the end of 2026. The government estimates the strategy could contribute more than $2.18 billion (AED 8 billion) annually to Dubai’s economy through financial technology development and expanded digital-payment activity.

Ramesh Cidambi, managing director of Dubai Duty Free, said: “Following the strategic partnership established through last year’s MoU, we are pleased to move into the roll-out phase with the introduction of Crypto.com Pay™. Available exclusively to eligible UAE residents through Crypto.com’s regulated payment platform, this launch reinforces our commitment to providing customers with greater convenience through innovative digital payment solutions while supporting Dubai’s vision of becoming a global leader in digital commerce.”

The rollout places crypto-linked payments in one of Dubai’s busiest retail environments. Its broader significance will depend on how smoothly the service works at checkout, which digital assets are supported and whether customers find it practical alongside cards and mobile wallets.