Zand: business account score and facts

Zand Bank PJSC is a Dubai bank licensed by the Central Bank of the UAE in July 2022, after its shareholders bought a majority stake in Dubai Bank from Emirates NBD in December 2021. It banks corporates, government-related entities, fintechs and virtual asset firms, and runs no branches and no retail offering. In 2025 it reported its first annual net profit, AED 34 million on income of AED 200 million, with customer deposits above AED 5 billion. Fitch affirmed it at BBB+ with a Stable Outlook in June 2026 on expected UAE state support, while the standalone viability rating stays at b minus. It holds digital assets in custody under a VARA custodian licence, and subsidiary Zand Trust holds a Central Bank licence to issue the dirham stablecoin AEDZ, which is in a phased rollout. Corporate accounts carry no monthly fee but expect an average balance of AED 250,000.

Legal name: Zand Bank PJSC
Regulated by: Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), Securities and Commodities Authority (UAE capital markets), Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA, Dubai)
Licence confirmed: yes, on a regulator's own list
Established: 2022
Website: www.zand.ae

Scores, 0 to 10

9.0Crypto-friendly bank

Holds a VARA licence as a digital asset custodian and banks named regulated virtual asset firms: from August 2025 CoinMENA clients move funds between their Zand accounts and CoinMENA wallets, and Zand runs collaborations with Web3 platform Klickl and tokenisation platforms Tokinvest and ForteXchain. · source

9.0Crypto wallet and custody for a business

First UAE bank to offer institutional digital asset custody under its banking licence, regulated by VARA, with a dedicated segregated wallet per client and assets stated as bankruptcy remote in its custody FAQ. · source

9.0Stablecoins (USDC, USDT and others)

Zand issues AEDZ, the UAE's first regulated AED stablecoin on public blockchains since November 2025, and announced USDC support for business payments and treasury in August 2026. · source

8.5Fintech companies that need a partner bank

Zand is the licensed bank behind Yuze business accounts from January 2026 and has signed fintech card and payment deals with areeba, Paymentology, Network International, Arab Financial Services and Mastercard. · source

7.5On-ramp: buy crypto with fiat

Zand banks VARA-licensed platforms and since August 2025 lets CoinMENA clients move funds between their Zand accounts and CoinMENA wallets; buying crypto directly inside a Zand business account was not shown on its custody page. · source

7.5Off-ramp: crypto to fiat in a business account

Its custody platform settles virtual and fiat assets together in real time with KYT and Travel Rule screening, so proceeds from regulated platforms land in the same bank relationship. · source

7.0Bitcoin

BTC is on Zand's custody asset list for institutions under its VARA licence, with hold and transfer supported; bank-side BTC buying or lending was not found. · source

7.0Ethereum

ETH and tokens on multiple networks are held in dedicated custody wallets for institutions; no staking service is listed. · source

6.0Middle East & Gulf

Fitch describes a fully licensed UAE digital bank serving corporates, fintech and wealth clients, but with a market share below 1% of UAE banking sector assets and a franchise Fitch expects to remain small. · source

6.0Lowest fees

No monthly account fee, free opening and closure and AED 5 local outward transfers, offset by an AED 500 plus VAT charge whenever the monthly average balance drops below AED 250,000. · source

6.0Fast digital onboarding

Applications start with an online interest form asking for emirate, company formation type, turnover and years in business, and no time to open an account is published. · source

6.0Financial strength & stability

Fitch affirmed BBB+ Stable in June 2026 on expected UAE state support, with a CET1 ratio of 45% at end-2025, while the standalone viability rating stays at b minus on a small absolute capital base. · source

5.0Online businesses: e-commerce and SaaS

ZandPay POS acquiring, commercial escrow with milestone payments and virtual accounts are live, but there are no foreign-currency collection accounts and no marketplace payout product. Zand offers an API suite for real-time balances, cash flow and payment initiation and settlement accounts in 11 currencies, but names no Stripe, accounting or card integrations for software companies. · source

5.0Customer satisfaction

The Zand Corporate app carries 3.8 stars from 5 ratings on the UAE App Store, and Zand's two other iOS apps hold 1 rating and none, too small a base to show a trend. · source

4.5Cross-border payments, FX and multi-currency accounts

International payments run over SWIFT under BIC ZANDAEAAXXX through correspondent accounts in 11 currencies including USD, EUR, GBP, CNY, INR and SGD, with no local collection rails abroad. Transaction banking, escrow and custody are live while Global Market treasury and FX services are still marked coming soon, and no cash pooling or hedging product is listed. · source

3.5Best interest on business balances

The published fee card states that no interest is paid on amounts below AED 250,000 and gives no credit interest rate at all. · source

3.5High-risk verticals (iGaming, cannabis, adult, forex)

Zand publishes no list of prohibited or restricted industries; the corporate banking FAQ covers only account operations such as statements, transfers and sub-accounts, so the score is conservative. · source

3.0Startups & VC-backed companies

Corporate accounts expect a monthly average balance of AED 250,000 and are charged AED 500 plus VAT below it, a bar most pre-revenue companies cannot clear. · source

3.0Foreign-owned & non-resident companies

The fee schedule charges AED 250 for a trade licence certificate and warns about a valid trade licence not provided for more than 60 days, which points to UAE-licensed companies, and Zand publishes no onboarding path for foreign-incorporated companies. · source

2.0Trade, manufacturing & import-export

The product range covers transaction banking, custody, stablecoins, POS and escrow with performance guarantees to regulators, and lists no letters of credit, documentary collections or supply-chain finance. · source

2.0Business cards (Visa, Mastercard)

The products page lists transaction banking, digital asset custody, ZandPay POS, escrow, global markets and wealth management and names no debit, credit or virtual card, and the fee schedule carries no card fees. · source

2.0Accept crypto payments

Zand lists payments among future uses of its AED stablecoin and USDC, but no merchant checkout or crypto invoice acceptance product appears on its site, checked September 2026. · source

Zand

Scores, 0 to 10

Sources