Animoca Brands Clears Final Hurdle With Abu Dhabi Fund Management Approval

What happened

Animoca Brands said it received approval to manage investment funds for non-retail clients in Abu Dhabi through its subsidiary Animoca Asset Management (AD) Limited. The Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Abu Dhabi Global Market granted the license, which took effect on Oct. 13.

Confirmed

Global impact / market context

The license lets Animoca pool money from professional investors rather than the general public, adding a regulated fee-earning business beyond its blockchain investments and mobile games. This could create recurring revenue from fund management and deepen its ties to Abu Dhabi's financial center.

Analyst inference

Animoca shifted from licensed mobile games to blockchain in 2018 and built a portfolio including OpenSea, Dapper Labs and Sky Mavis. The approval completes a process started with in-principle approval in November 2025 and follows a Dubai license in February for virtual asset brokerage.

Analyst inference

What to watch

1. Animoca also secured a Dubai license in February to provide virtual asset brokerage and investment management services to institutional and qualified investors, adding to its regulated financial services activity in the region. Confirmed
2. Watch whether Animoca launches its first Abu Dhabi professional-investor fund and discloses its size, strategy and fee structure, which would show whether the license turns into actual revenue. Proposed
3. Watch whether Animoca's September investor update or later filings break out asset management revenue, since fund fees could diversify income away from volatile blockchain investment gains. Analyst inference

Evidence

• binance.com