Emirates NBD, the bank owned by the government of Dubai, is starting to offer crypto trading through its digital banking subsidiary Liv.

Liv is allowing customers to buy and sell cryptocurrencies in its new app Liv X, according to an emailed announcement on Thursday.

Dubai has been establishing itself as a crypto hub over a number of years, offering reasonably clear rules for firms to obtain licensing. This has seen major exchanges such as Binance, Crypto.com and OKX win approvals.

Against this backdrop, the Dubai government’s own bank has made the move to offer crypto trading.

Liv is offering its crypto service using infrastructure operated by Aquanow, a digital asset platform licensed by Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA).

Standard Chartered-backed Zodia is providing custody services for Liv’s new offering.