CBUAE Revokes Omda’s Licence and Imposes Dh10 Million Penalty

The Central Bank of the UAE has withdrawn the operating licence of Omda Exchange and imposed a financial penalty of Dh10 million, removing the firm from the official register of licensed exchange houses in the country.

The action follows supervisory examinations conducted by the Central Bank, which identified regulatory breaches and compliance failures under the UAE’s Central Bank and Financial Institutions Law and its subsequent amendments. As a result, Omda Exchange is no longer authorised to conduct exchange or money services within the UAE.

While the Central Bank did not publish a detailed breakdown of the violations, it confirmed that the findings were sufficient to justify both licence revocation and a significant monetary sanction. The measures were taken under the Decretal Federal Law governing the Central Bank and the organisation of financial institutions and activities, which grants the regulator broad enforcement powers over licensed entities.

The move aligns with a wider enforcement trend targeting money service providers that fail to meet regulatory and operational standards. Earlier this year, the Central Bank imposed a Dh10.7 million penalty on another exchange and revoked the licence of Al Nahdi Exchange following serious deficiencies related to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing controls.

Regulatory actions of this scale reflect heightened supervisory scrutiny across the non-bank financial sector, particularly in areas linked to cash handling, remittances, and cross-border transactions. Exchange houses are subject to strict requirements covering internal governance, transaction monitoring, customer due diligence, and sanctions compliance.

The Central Bank reiterated that it continues to exercise its supervisory mandate to ensure that exchange houses, their shareholders, and management comply with applicable laws and regulatory standards. Enforcement actions, including licence revocations, fines, and removals from the official register, remain available where serious or repeated breaches are identified.