Nine Blocks Capital Management, a crypto hedge fund, has obtained a license from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), making it the first fund to do so. The hedge fund has made public plans that it will be relocating its global headquarters to Dubai.

Nine Blocks employs a market neutral trading strategy to exploit arbitrage opportunities and market inefficiencies in the cryptocurrency ecosystem. Being market neutral means that the fund does not take any directional risk, allowing it to generate alpha from crypto market inefficiencies. The fund focuses on arbitrage between perpetual swaps and the spot price of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and etherea.

The license will allow Nine Blocks to offer virtual asset services to crypto users in Dubai, including digital asset management and investment products. This comes in light of the UAE's plans to become a global crypto hub. The country has followed up by having extensive conversations with industry when it comes to the VARA rulebook.

Along with Nine Blocks, several firms such as Finance, crypto.com, Hex Trust and OKX have benefited from UAE's new regulations.