Tether’s XAUt gold token receives Shariah certification to expand Islamic finance access

The certification could expand access to Tether’s gold-backed token among Islamic financial institutions and investors seeking Shariah-compliant exposure to physical gold.

Tether tokenized gold. Source: RWA.xyz

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Shariah compliance and digital assets

Cryptocurrencies have long divided Islamic scholars, with debates centering on whether digital assets comply with Shariah principles that prohibit excessive uncertainty, speculation and interest. As companies seek to address those concerns, Shariah-compliant digital assets have begun to emerge.

Examples of Shariah-compliant initiatives

One early example came in 2025, when Bahrain-based AlAbraaj Restaurants Group adopted a Bitcoin (BTC) treasury strategy and said it planned to develop Shariah-compliant financial instruments to broaden access to Bitcoin across the Islamic world.

More recently, in April, Palm Azgar Finance expanded its Shariah-compliant PUSD stablecoin to ADI Chain, targeting the more than $3 trillion Islamic finance market. PUSD became the second stablecoin available on the network, allowing institutions to settle transactions using either a dollar-linked asset or a dirham-denominated token on the same infrastructure.

Dubai's expanding crypto ecosystem

Meanwhile, Dubai has emerged as a leading crypto hub in the Middle East, continuing to expand its regulated digital asset market. Earlier this month, the emirate’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) issued its 50th virtual asset service provider license, surpassing the number of licensed crypto firms in Hong Kong and Singapore.

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