Dubai Multi Commodities Center (DMCC), which provides infrastructure for commodities trade, has signed deals to set up a blockchain-enabled precious metals refinery and storage facility in the emirate.

The refinery and facility, which will be the largest across the GCC and the first to be completely enabled by blockchain, will be completed by end 2022, the DMCC said in a statement Wednesday.

As part of the agreement it signed a sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with REIT Development which acquired land in DMCC’s Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT) business district.

The facility will refine and store precious metals including gold, silver, platinum, palladium and rhodium, which will be tokenised on goldexchange.com, a digital or virtual currency that is secured by cryptograph.

Gold Exchange DMCC, a secured trading platform, will provide access to financial assets in the form of stablecoins namely GoldCoin, SilverCoin, PlatinumCoin, PalladiumCoin and RhodiumCoin. Each Ethereum-based token will represent the current value of one gram of each metal and can be traded on the exchange. The tokens will be physically backed by the precious metals at DMCC’s secure storage facility, meaning they can be traded with confidence.

Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, DMCC, said: “The gold and precious metals industry is expected to witness significant growth in the coming period and through similar agreements, we can advance the industry as a whole.”

Blockchain technology can enable more transparent and accurate tracking of precious metals, ensuring there is no ‘dirty gold’ in circulation and illicit trades, said Mike De Vries, Chief Operation Officer, REIT Development.

(Writing by Brinda Darasha; editing by Seban Scaria)

brinda.darasha@refinitiv.com

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