Middle East's first fully licensed crypto exchange ‘Rain’ is now live
The journey that began in 2016 for Rain, has seen it become the Middle East’s first completely regulated and licensed cryptocurrency exchange.
In a first for the MENA region, Rain, a Bahrain-based cryptocurrency exchange platform has received the Crypto-Asset Module (CRA) license from the Central Bank of Bahrain. Besides the license, it has also raised USD 2.5 million in seed funding—the largest in Bahrain till date.
With the regulatory approval and $2.5 million in funding, Rain is now live and ready for trade—becoming the Middle East’s first cryptocurrency exchange to obtain a full regulatory license. People can trade via the platform on www.rain.bh
The $2.5 million seed round was co-led by BitMEX Ventures and Kuwait-based cryptocurrency fund, Blockwater. Other investors in the round include Vision Ventures, 500 Startups MENA, and Taibah Valley.
Fueled by this recent licensure and institutional round of funding, Rain aims to deliver easier and more reliable access to cryptocurrency across the region.Rain
Founded in 2016 by Yehia Badawy, Abdullah Almoaiqel, AJ Nelson and Joseph Dallago, Rain got its first impetus in February 2017 when it contacted the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB). The session with CBB that saw the four entrepreneurs explain the potential of a cryptocurrency exchange in the region, soon made Rain the first such exchange to enter the Bank’s Regulatory Sandbox Program.
Since then, Rain’s founders worked closely with the regulator for over two years. And today, in another first for the region, Rain has earned the title of the first cryptocurrency exchange to be fully licensed as per the regulations.
Other cryptocurrency heavyweights who invested in Rain include Jimmy Song, Mike Komarnsky (founder of Cumberland Mining), Aaron Lasher and Aaron Voisine (co-founders of BRD, formerly Breadwallet), Compound.finance, CMT Digital (worldwide commodities trading firm headquartered in Chicago), and the founding team of JMBullion (largest precious metals brokerage in the United States).
As the first licensed cryptocurrency exchange in the Middle East, Rain has an unprecedented opportunity to tap into the incredible potential that cryptocurrency trading will bring to the region. We believe that Rain will bring greater diversification to Middle-Eastern traders with its exchange offering and experienced team, and we are thrilled to contribute to this defining moment.”Arthur Hayes, Co-Founder and CEO of BitMEX
There are many cryptocurrency fans and interested traders in the region that are excited with this news. As a first for the region, Rain will no doubt enjoy the privilege of customers trusting the platform even after competitors emerge. But most of all, this license is a symbol of the openness and dedication of Bahrain as well as the region to move forward with the latest technology.
Customers can open an account through the Rain website www.rain.bh, as well as its iOS or Android mobile app.
