Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE)
What is a Payment Token under UAE Central Bank rules?
Content reviewed 2026-08-14 · How we check sources
Short answer
A Payment Token is a token that falls within the definitions and scope of the CBUAE Payment Token Services Regulation and is used as a regulated medium of exchange. The regulation distinguishes Dirham Payment Tokens and Foreign Payment Tokens and regulates specified services around them.
What this means
The legal label matters because the CBUAE framework is about payment use, not crypto technology in the abstract. A token used for investment, securities or other virtual-asset activity can fall under another UAE regulator instead or in addition.
For product design, test the token function first: what backs it, what currency it references, who issues it, how it is redeemed and whether users can use it to pay for goods or services.
Official sources
CBUAE — Payment Token Services Regulation ↗Ask with your entity, activity and regulator.
Regulatory research, not legal advice. This answer has the scope and review date shown above; your institution decides applicability.