Zand, an AI-driven fintech and financial services group, has partnered with Chainlink Labs, a primary contributing developer of Chainlink, an oracle technology provider.
The collaboration aims to optimise the integration of tokenised assets and blockchain-based financial solutions in the UAE financial system. Chainlink will offer the foundational connectivity needed to build compliance-focused digital asset infrastructure that interacts across blockchains and traditional systems.
Optimising tokenised assets
The partnership supports Zand Bank’s digital asset strategy, drawing on Chainlink’s industry experience and solutions, such as Automated Compliance Engine (ACE), Automation, Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP), and VRF, to support financial use cases that improve the UAE’s digital asset landscape.
Zand representatives reported the company’s positive feelings regarding the partnership, stating that Zand and Chainlink are exploring more collaborative opportunities to accelerate digital adoption and efficacy. With a shared vision to deliver innovative, secure, and fast solutions that merge traditional finance and decentralised finance, the alliance will contribute to the digital economy.
The initiative comes as Zand Bank serves as the official banking partner of the DLD during the pilot of the department’s programme to test tokenised property investments using the Prypco Mint platform. DLD carried out this project in May 2025, in partnership with Prypco and under the oversight of several government and financial institutions, including the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), the Central Bank of the UAE, and the Dubai Future Foundation (DFF).
Other plans from the UAE regarding crypto
In August 2025, the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) moved toward the rollout phase of its digital currency, the Digital Dirham. Initially, the UAE tested wholesale CBDC settlement with Saudi Arabia in Project Aber, from 2019 to 2020, before becoming a founding participant in the mBridge initiative conducted by the BIS Innovation Hub together with Hong Kong, China, and Thailand. In 2025, the CBUAE leveraged the platform to process a live cross-border payment in Digital Dirham.
