BlackRock & Ripple’s Dubai Dash: How Abu Dhabi & MENA Are the New Billionaire Babysitters

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Imagine a titan of finance-BlackRock-deciding to hold its VIP, ‘bigwig-only’ board meeting in Abu Dhabi. Not in New York, not in London, but in the shimmering sands of the Middle East’s crown jewel of money-motivation. Yes, the giant of asset management showed up, lounged around swapping ideas with the local VIPs-including, of course, the ever-charismatic Larry Fink, the man whose handshake might as well be a legal contract.

This latest bit of news suggests that BlackRock’s tiny, tiny focus on Abu Dhabi isn’t just a casual glance at a new shiny toy. No, it’s a full-blown obsession, a laser beam aimed at the UAE and the broad Middle Eastern playground where fortunes are made faster than you can say “cryptocurrency.” Reece Merrick from Ripple, probably wearing a very serious look, hinted that this move might open a treasure chest of opportunities for Ripple to strut its stuff in the region-because, why not?

High-level engagement-and probably some high-end coffee too

Besides the usual business chit-chat, the meeting was graced by UAE royalty (who probably felt so important) and the man with the master plan, Larry Fink himself. They gossiped about artificial intelligence, futuristic tech, and how to reinvent global investments-because nothing screams ‘boring’ like global finance, right? Abu Dhabi is clearly trying to outshine every city in the universe as the hub of innovation and money smarts-just in time for Ripple to jump on that bandwagon like a kid on a sugar rush.

Ripple’s love affair with the Middle East – a story of remittance & regional dominance

Ripple, that little startup with big ambitions, has been eyeing MENA for ages-probably since they spotted the region’s immense remittance corridors that make even Silicon Valley look sluggish. By 2021, RippleNet was already racking up impressive transaction numbers across the region-because nothing gets faster traffic than money crossing borders-probably faster than the local taxis, which are notoriously… leisurely.

They sweetened their regional love affair by opening a shiny new office in Dubai’s financial playground, DIFC, and even hosting their annual “Swell” bash right there in the desert city of dreams. In 2023, they doubled down, expanding their Dubai footprint and teaming up with the DIFC Innovation Hub, ensuring their presence is as embedded as the oil veins of… well, Dubai.

As if that wasn’t enough regional swagger, in March 2025, Ripple swaggered even further by snagging a license from Dubai’s financial overlords (yes, the DFSA) to officially play with regulated crypto payments-probably making the Dubai skyline look even more futuristic, which is no mean feat.

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2025-11-24 09:07