Tether and Circle, issuers of the two largest stablecoins in the world, have just received major regulatory greenlights in UAE’s Abu Dhabi.

Tether’s Stablecoin Recognized As ARFT, While Circle Obtains FSP License

Major developments related to the cryptocurrency sector have occurred in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this week, with Tether and Circle both winning approvals in Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the international financial center and free economic zone of Abu Dhabi, UAE’s capital.

First, as Tether has announced in a press release, USDT issued on a number of blockchains has been recognized as an Accepted Fiat-Referenced Token (ARFT) in ADGM. USDT already received approval from ADGM last year, but the previous recognition only included the Ethereum, Solana, and Avalanche versions. With the new regulatory nod, USDT available on Aptos, Celo, Cosmos, Kaia, Near, Polkadot, Tezos, TON, and TRON has also entered the market.

“By extending recognition to USD₮ on several major blockchains, ADGM further strengthens Abu Dhabi’s position as a global hub for compliant digital finance,” said Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino.

USDT being considered as an ARFT means that authorized persons licensed by ADGM’s Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) can offer regulated activities involving the stablecoin on nearly all its native blockchains. “Introducing USD₮ within ADGM’s regulated digital asset framework reinforces the role of stablecoins as essential components of today’s financial landscape,” noted Ardoino.

Meanwhile, Circle, the issuer of USDC, has also advanced in the region with a new license from the FSRA, according to an announcement. The license, called the Financial Services Permission (FSP), allows the company to operate as a Money Services Provider in ADGM.

Arvind Ramamurthy, ADGM Chief Market Development Officer, said:

Circle’s regulated presence in ADGM reinforces our ambition to build a trusted, institutional-grade digital asset ecosystem in Abu Dhabi, one that enhances market confidence, supports real-world use cases, and cements the UAE’s role as a leading hub for regulated digital finance.

The greenlight from ADGM follows the recognition of Circle’s USD and EUR stablecoins by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) in February of this year. The move made USDC and EURC the first stablecoins to be approved in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).

The new FSP license means “Circle is positioned to expand regulated payment and settlement use cases in the UAE for businesses, developers, and financial institutions,” the statement noted.

Stablecoins have witnessed rapid growth throughout 2025, setting multiple records. The near-constant growth in these tokens, however, saw a break in October, as the combined market cap of this side of the cryptocurrency sector reversed course.

As the above chart from DefiLlama shows, the stablecoin market cap declined to a low in mid-November. Since this bottom, though, capital inflows have returned for these fiat-tied assets, with the market cap once again nearing in on a new record.

Bitcoin Price

At the time of writing, Bitcoin is floating around $90,100, up almost 4% in the last seven days.

Crypto analyst ChartNerd has predicted that the XRP price could rally 10x if a specific trend repeats. The analyst also revealed what needs to happen for the altcoin to invalidate this potential parabolic rally.  

XRP Price Could Rally 10x If This 2017 Pattern Plays Out

In an X post, ChartNerd predicted that the XRP price could rally 1,000% if a bullish pattern from the 2017 bull cycle plays out. The analyst noted that during the 2017 euphoric run, the altcoin had a 3-month cool-off period where it successfully dropped towards its 3-month 20-EMA for a retest before a 25x move to the upside.  

ChartNerd revealed that the XRP price has now witnessed the exact same set-up in this 2025 bull cycle. The altcoin recorded a huge breakout last year and is now seeing a 3-month cool-off period towards a 3-month 20-EMA retest. The analyst stated that if history is set to repeat, XRP could see a 10x upside move, signaling a blow-off top.  

The analyst also alluded to the 2021 lower high, which he noted ties up with both the monthly candle close highs from 2017 and also the SEC lawsuit, which is believed to have suppressed the XRP price during the 2021 cycle. ChartNerd added that to invalidate this potential rally, XRP will need to close below its 3-month 20-EMA at $1.20. Until then, he noted that the bulls remain in control. 

Meanwhile, ChartNerd outlined $8, $13, and $27 as the potential top-out points for the XRP price. Notably, a rally to any of these price targets will mark a new all-time high (ATH) for the altcoin. Crypto analyst Egrag Crypto had also previously predicted that XRP could reach $27 in this bull run if it mirrors the 2017 price action. 

XRP Could Be The Next Crypto To Record A Major Run

Market commentator Milk Road suggested in an X post that the XRP price could soon record a major run. The platform cited bullish fundamentals for the altcoin, including the fact that RLUSD crossed $1 billion in market cap in record time. The run to this milestone is said to be faster than almost any stablecoin Ripple has ever pushed. 

Furthermore, Milk Road noted that Abu Dhabi’s ADGM has opened the door for institutions to use RLUSD as real collateral, which is also bullish for the XRP price. The market commentator stated that global liquidity with regulated on-ramps could mean the kind of flows that crypto hasn’t seen in months. It is also worth noting that XRP is seeing significant flows into its ecosystem through the U.S. spot ETFs. 

At the time of writing, the XRP price is trading at around $2.18, down in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap.