Google will allow ads for cryptocurrency exchanges and software wallets targeting the United Arab Emirates from Oct. 21, 2026, under updated Financial Products and Services rules that clarify licensing requirements for advertisers following regulatory changes in the country.

Under the revised policy, advertisers must hold a license from one of four authorities: the Capital Markets Authority (C), the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) or the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA). They must also be certified by Google and comply with local laws. For exchanges and wallet providers, the requirements place both a UAE regulator and Google itself in the path to advertising in the country.

The authorities named in the policy span the UAE's financial centers and its broader regulatory framework. The DFSA regulates financial services conducted in the Dubai International Financial Centre, while the FSRA performs the equivalent role for the Abu Dhabi Global Market. VARA, established in Dubai in March 2022, is the emirate's dedicated regulator for virtual assets.

Ads for complex speculative financial products, such as contracts for difference (CFDs) and rolling spot forex, will be permitted in the UAE only if advertisers are licensed by the CMA, DFSA or FSRA and have obtained Google certification — a narrower set of licenses than the four authorities accepted for exchange and wallet ads. Compliance with applicable UAE regulations is also required for these products.

The revised policy will apply worldwide to all accounts advertising these products, regardless of where advertisers are based, while advertisers remain responsible for following the laws of each market they target.

On enforcement, Google said it would provide at least seven days' warning before suspending an account for policy violations, rather than suspending it immediately.

The change continues Google's practice of gating cryptocurrency advertising behind local licensing and its own certification process. The company first reopened ads for crypto exchanges and wallets in the United States in August 2021 under a certification regime tied to federal registration and state licensing, and has since introduced comparable country-specific requirements in other jurisdictions. The Oct. 21, 2026 effective date marks the point from which exchanges and wallet providers holding the required license and Google certification can run ads targeting the UAE.