GAP 3 Partners FZCO Makes History as Dubai’s First VARA-Licensed Virtual Asset Investment Advisor

Dubai just got its first regulated crypto sherpa—and Wall Street’s compliance officers are sweating into their spreadsheets.

GAP 3 Partners FZCO just scored the holy grail: an operational license from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA). No more regulatory gray areas—just hard-won legitimacy in the world’s most aggressive crypto hub.

Why this matters:

- VARA doesn’t hand out licenses like free conference swag. This stamp of approval signals serious institutional-grade compliance chops.

- Dubai’s playing 4D chess while other regulators are stuck banning JPEGs of monkeys. The emirate now has a licensed guide for navigating digital asset investments.

- Watch for copycat moves from traditional finance firms—nothing gets hedge funds moving like FOMO on a fresh revenue stream.

The bottom line? While New York and London argue over paperwork, Dubai’s building the infrastructure for the next trillion dollars in crypto investments. And GAP 3 just became its first officially sanctioned tour guide.

(Bonus jab: Finally, an ‘investment advisor’ that won’t push 2% management fees on your Bitcoin holdings.)

GAP 3 Partners (“G3”), a Dubai-based institutional VIRTUAL asset advisory firm, today announced that it has been granted an Operational License by the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA). With this advisory license, G3 becomes the first regulated Virtual Asset Investment Advisor authorized to provide its full range of services to institutional clients across the Emirate.

This approval marks a significant milestone for both G3 and Dubai’s evolving virtual asset regulatory landscape, positioning the firm at the forefront of institutional adoption in the region.

Founded by industry veterans Robin Janaway (Outlier Ventures), Chris Donovan (NEAR Foundation), and Adib Tohme, G3 offers advisory services covering token strategy, investment, structuring, licensing, treasury management, and token-market execution.

G3 now stands ready to support family offices, corporations, and investment institutions seeking secure and compliant access to the digital asset space, including emerging opportunities in real-world asset (RWA) tokenisation and blockchain-based financial infrastructure.

“Dubai’s regulatory leadership together with accelerating institutional interest in digital assets create a unique environment for growth,” said the founding team in a joint statement. “We are building G3 to be the region’s premier Virtual Asset Investment Advisor—trusted by institutions to navigate complexity, unlock value, and lead in the next era of finance.”

With over a decade of combined digital asset experience, G3 is leveraging Dubai’s progressive regulatory framework to help clients future-proof their operations and investments. As real-world asset tokenisation and institutional digital asset strategies accelerate, G3 offers the structure, insight, and regulatory clarity needed to support high-trust adoption at scale.

GAP 3 Partners is a Dubai-based, VARA-licensed investment advisory firm bridging traditional finance and Web3. Founded by industry leaders with DEEP roots in the digital asset ecosystem, G3 is built to serve the next generation of institutional investors.

They provide end-to-end virtual asset advisory services under a unified mandate—covering strategy, structuring, licensing, treasury management, and token-market execution.

 – In an increasingly complex regulatory and technological environment, GAP 3 Partners helps clients turn uncertainty into advantage. Their mission is to future-proof institutional capital by unlocking the full potential of crypto—through trusted, regulated, and strategically grounded advisory services across investments, infrastructure, and product development. They combine deep sector expertise with institutional discipline to guide clients confidently through the evolving digital asset landscape.