QR payments at Dubai's airports settle in dirhams, so the retailer carries no crypto price risk. Dubai's cashless target: 90% of transactions by 2026.
Dubai Duty Free started accepting Crypto.com Pay on Aug. 5, 2026. Customers can use it at Dubai International Airport and Al Maktoum International Airport; the online store takes it too. Only eligible UAE residents with Crypto.com accounts can pay this way.
"Dubai Duty Free has officially launched Crypto.com Pay, becoming the first airport retailer in the Middle East to introduce a regulated digital payment solution," the retailer said in its announcement.
Dubai Duty Free serves millions of international travelers through the emirate's airports, selling luxury goods, electronics, cosmetics, and other consumer categories. Its digital checkout already includes Apple Pay and Alipay.
Crypto.com Pay is built into the existing checkout flow, so the store did not need a separate retail payment system to accept it. In-store shoppers pick the option at the till and receive a QR code showing the purchase amount in UAE dirhams. They scan it in the Crypto.com App and approve the transaction; the sale then goes through. Online, checkout generates a secure QR code; mobile users review and approve it in the Crypto.com App, then return to complete the order.
Merchant settlement stays in dirhams. "Transactions are processed securely through Crypto.com's regulated payment infrastructure, with settlement in UAE Dirhams (AED) to Dubai Duty Free," the retailer said. The retailer takes no crypto price exposure on the sale; any conversion happens inside Crypto.com's payment flow, not in the store's books.
Crypto.com operates its UAE payment service under a stored value facilities (SVF) license from the Central Bank of the UAE. Stored value facilities let customers hold electronic monetary balances with an approved provider and spend them on payments. The central bank's rules for those services cover customer protection, system security, operational controls, and compliance standards, and the bank oversees providers to keep those safeguards in place.
Emirates already accepts Crypto.com Pay for flight bookings. Dubai Duty Free's rollout gives the payment method its second travel-sector outlet in the emirate.
Financial institutions across the UAE have built their own blockchain-based payment initiatives. Emirates NBD introduced real-time USD blockchain payments to cut delays in cross-border transfers.
Eric Anziani, Crypto.com's president and chief operating officer, said Dubai Duty Free is "one of the world's most recognised travel retail brands and one of the largest single airport duty free operators globally." The rollout, he said, "marks another important milestone in expanding regulated digital payment solutions for everyday commerce."
Under the Dubai Economic Agenda D33, the Dubai Cashless Strategy targets cashless transactions at 90% of all transactions across government and private sectors by 2026.
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