what's DDSC?
DDSC is a programmable stablecoin backed 1:1 by UAE Dirham reserves, approved and licensed by the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) and regulated under ADGM. Initiated by International Holding Company (IHC) and First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), with Sirius International Holding supporting deployment, it operates exclusively on ADI Chain—an institutional Ethereum Layer 2 blockchain developed by the Abu Dhabi-based ADI Foundation. FAB provides custody for reserves, enabling compliant issuance and distribution for enterprise-scale applications. Designed for high-value use cases, DDSC facilitates 24/7 cross-border payments, real estate tokenization (e.g., via ADREC), government services like digital identity and e-invoicing, remittances (e.g., potential M-Pesa integration), and treasury management. Transactions settle on ADI Chain using $ADI as the gas token, providing low-cost, programmable infrastructure secured by Ethereum with native compliance features for sovereign and institutional adoption.
Mastercard is exploring payment integrations with DDSC.
Backed by International Holding Company (IHC) ($240B market cap) and First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) ($330B assets), with fiat reserves held in custody by FAB.
Discussing cross-border settlement with M-Pesa and Mastercard, including DDSC integration.
Partnered with Mastercard, BlackRock, Franklin Templeton, and FTI_Global; signed MoU with Mastercard.
Launched UAE Central Bank-approved, CBUAE-licensed, ADGM regulated, 1:1 dirham-backed stablecoin on ADI Chain (ETH L2) on 2026-02-12 by International Holding Company (IHC) and First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), powering ADIChain infrastructure and institutional onboarding in UAE.