City: Riyadh
Country: Saudi Arabia
Population: 7.82 million (metro)
Established: 1737
Language: Arabic
In the center of the an-Nafud desert rises Riyadh, Arabic for “the meadows,” the third most populous city in the Middle East. But it’s likely not the first place that comes to mind when you think about crypto and gaming.
Cryptocurrency is a gray area, neither banned outright nor endorsed, and it can be tricky to access.
Despite this, research by KuCoin suggests that 14% of Saudis between 18 and 60 own crypto. Morrad Irsane, CEO of Takadao — a blockchain for halal insurance — takes this as clear evidence of the direction in which things are headed. He tells Magazine:
“You cannot buy, you cannot sell, yet still they managed to have the fastest-growing population of crypto owners!”
The area was founded by the Banu Hanifa tribe and established about 1,000 years later in 1737 when a wall was built to circle a number of oasis towns, or “meadows,” into one. Wealth grew with farming, and in 1774, the First Saudi State established its capital in nearby Diriyah. Two hundred fifty years later, the city has expanded to become the modern capital of Saudi Arabia.
The old city of Diriyah, from which the kingdom was first ruled. (Elias Ahonen)
Ahmed Yusuf, an American who has lived in Saudi Arabia since 2015, describes the local approach to crypto to Magazine as “not illegal or legal — maybe frowned upon, but it is used.”
He describes banks as broadly cautious and unfriendly toward crypto, with the government essentially biding its time because “they don’t want to regulate until they understand.”
He points to recent market volatility, speculating that “no government [of Saudi Arabia] would be as bold as El Salvador” and risk promoting an investment that might cause citizens to lose money.
Despite this, “20%–30% of my classmates own or trade crypto,” a local finance student…
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