RAK Bank has received in-principle approval for a dirham-backed stablecoin. The focus is now shifting to launch readiness, real world use cases, and liquidity — and whether this marks the start of a much broader on-chain banking model. Joining us is Dishang Patel, Head of Digital Assets at RAK Bank. Welcome to the show.
Thank you for having me, Rachel.
RAK Bank has received in-principle approval to issue a dirham-backed stablecoin. What problem will it solve first?
I think the perspective has to be considered around many angles. Blockchain is the technology of the future, and if you buy into that, then a lot of payments are going to go in that direction. The central bank's Payment Token Service Regulation tells you a lot about what they have in mind. As a bank, there are lots of different utility values we can build — not only remittance or payment corridors. We can also create efficiency and reduce costs for our customers across both retail and institutional use cases.
What are the most important regulatory and operational milestones before launch?
Speed is always of the essence in this area of technology. But we feel as a bank we have a fiduciary responsibility to ensure that governance, compliance, and risk management are all considered as part of this setup. It is not just about launching the technology. There is a lot the central bank requires — not just to provide but to prove. There will be a lot of validation during the process. But equally, we need to keep to our high standards of security and governance. That will be the key to long-term success.
Is this a payments product, a treasury product, or the beginning of a wider on-chain banking model?
It is the wider piece. The brokerage solution we have with our partners is the main component, but that is not our only business. The stablecoin — which we are calling the RAK Bank Digital Coin — would be the lifeblood running through the blockchain economy the bank is trying to build. Yes, it is a payment mechanism, but it is also an enabler. For example, opening up liquidity pools in the Web3 world, or enabling use cases that simply would not be possible for a bank like ours otherwise. The payment facility is the first stop, but ultimately it will allow us to expand our offerings and ecosystem.
Which use case will gain traction first — payments, remittances, or tokenised asset settlement?
It really depends on the market you are trying to serve. The utility value you create will ultimately determine success. A basic example — we have a brokerage platform and the ability to remit money for our customers. Imagine using one digital currency, our RAK Bank Digital Coin, across all of these different parts of the ecosystem without having to transfer from one account to another. Being able to take a position from your brokerage portfolio and remit money out to loved ones in home countries — that utility is really the winning piece.
What is the single unresolved question the industry needs to answer to move from pilots to institutional scale?
I think the doing is the key. There is a lot of theorising and strategising. The time is now to run pilots through corridors, do remittance use cases, introduce domestic payment use cases, and then connect those dots together. That will start building the ecosystem for real benefit to be seen. A question I always get asked is — if it is not broken, why fix it? But if we think there is a better way of doing something, why would we not explore it? That will ultimately be a benefit to everybody — customers and the entities providing these solutions — through more efficiency, reduced costs, and more business.
Thank you so much for coming on the show.
It has been my pleasure. Thank you.
