GHO

In the UAE, gold tokens and other asset-backed tokens are regulated virtual assets: Dubai's regulator requires a licence and token-by-token approval to issue them, and platforms must admit each asset before offering it. The central bank bans algorithmic stablecoins across the country, and synthetic dollar tokens that are not backed one-to-one by fiat cannot be used as payment tokens. Use a platform licensed by the CMA, VARA, ADGM FSRA or DFSA and check that the token is admitted there. Individuals pay no income tax on gains.

Regulators

Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), Capital Market Authority (CMA, federal), Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA, Dubai), ADGM Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA), Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA, DIFC)Read moreShow less

Licensing

Platforms: CMA onshore (CMA Decision No. 4/R.M/2026 — licensed firms must assess and register virtual assets with the CMA before offering them, and algorithmic and privacy tokens are prohibited), VARA in Dubai, FSRA in ADGM, DFSA in the DIFC (since 12 Jan 2026 licensed firms assess token suitability themselves instead of relying on a DFSA-approved list). Issuance in Dubai: fiat-referenced tokens and ARVAs are Category 1 issuances — the issuer needs a VARA licence and VARA's prior approval for each token. Whether a specific gold token (e.g. PAXG, XAUT) or crypto-backed dollar token is available therefore depends on the platform's regulator and its asset admission; this research did not verify which of them are admitted.Read moreShow less

Payments

restricted — only licensed dirham payment tokens, or registered foreign fiat payment tokens used to buy virtual assets, may be accepted as payment; gold tokens and synthetic dollars are not payment tokens and cannot be used for general payments.Read moreShow less

Tax

No personal income or capital gains tax; transfers and conversions of virtual assets are VAT-exempt (Cabinet Decision 100/2024). Corporate tax applies to business profits.Read moreShow less

In the EU a gold token counts as an asset-referenced token, and a dollar token with an identifiable issuer is an e-money or asset-referenced token under MiCA, however its peg is maintained. Licensed EU platforms may only offer such tokens if the issuer is authorised in the EU; otherwise they had to stop trading them by the end of March 2025. Germany's BaFin, for example, stopped Ethena's USDe business there in 2025 and ordered the tokens to be redeemed. Fully decentralised tokens without an issuer sit in a grey zone. Holding and self-custody are not banned. Check the ESMA register before buying; tax depends on your Member State.

Regulators

ESMA, European Banking Authority (EBA), National competent authorities (e.g. BaFin, AMF, AFM)

Licensing

Offering an ART to the public or seeking its admission to trading requires authorisation of the issuer in the EU (a credit institution or a legal person authorised under Article 21) and an approved white paper (Article 16); EMTs require an EU credit institution or e-money institution. Issuers and CASPs may not grant interest on ARTs (Article 40). ESMA's statement of 17 Jan 2025, following a Commission Q&A, covers both non-compliant ARTs and EMTs: CASPs had to stop making them available for trading by end of Q1 2025, while custody and transfer may continue. Enforcement example: on 21 Mar 2025 BaFin, citing serious shortcomings found in the authorisation procedure, prohibited Ethena GmbH, issuer of USDe in Germany, from continuing to offer USDe to the public and had its reserve assets frozen; after Ethena GmbH withdrew its authorisation application on 3 Apr 2025, BaFin ordered it to wind up the business and reverse the issuance of USDe through a redemption process under BaFin supervision. CASP authorisation applies since 30 Dec 2024 and all transitional periods ended on 1 Jul 2026. This research did not verify which gold-backed tokens (e.g. PAXG, XAUT) have an EU-authorised ART issuer; check the ESMA register.Read moreShow less

Payments

Allowed in principle — MiCA does not ban paying with crypto-assets, but ARTs are not a payment instrument category and Article 23 lets authorities restrict ARTs used widely as a means of exchange within a single currency area. Tokens without an EU-authorised issuer cannot be bought through EU-licensed platforms; self-custody and transfers are not prohibited.Read moreShow less

Tax

Set by each Member State; the treatment of gold-backed and synthetic-dollar tokens follows national crypto-asset rules. DAC8 obliges CASPs to report users' crypto-asset transactions from 1 Jan 2026.Read moreShow less

Buying and holding gold tokens and crypto-backed dollar tokens is legal in the US, but the new stablecoin law (GENIUS Act) protects only 'payment stablecoins' redeemable by a licensed issuer for a fixed amount of dollars. Gold tokens such as PAXG and synthetic dollars such as DAI or USDe sit outside that regime: they get none of its reserve, redemption or insolvency protections, and the SEC has said its 2025 view that plain dollar stablecoins are not securities does not cover them. Treasury was asked to study such tokens. Gains are taxed as property. Rules may change as regulators finish GENIUS Act rules and Congress revisits market structure.

Regulators

SEC, CFTC, OCC, U.S. Treasury (incl. OFAC, FinCEN), State regulators (e.g. NYDFS), IRS

Licensing

No dedicated licence regime for commodity-backed or synthetic dollar tokens. Platforms operate under FinCEN money-services registration and state money-transmitter licences (e.g. New York BitLicense); a federal market-structure law (CLARITY Act) failed a Senate cloture vote on 15 Sep 2026 (as reported). Gold token example: PAX Gold (PAXG) is issued by Paxos Trust Company, N.A., which states it is a trust company and custodian regulated by the OCC, with each token backed by one fine troy ounce of LBMA gold. Because these tokens are not payment stablecoins, the GENIUS Act rules that from 18 Jul 2028 restrict US service providers to stablecoins of permitted or qualifying foreign issuers do not by their terms reach them. Section 14 of the Act required Treasury, with the Fed, OCC, FDIC, SEC and CFTC, to study non-payment stablecoins, including endogenously collateralised stablecoins, within a year of enactment; publication of that study was not verified in this research. Yield-bearing designs (e.g. staked USDe) may raise securities-law questions that no official guidance found here resolves.Read moreShow less

Payments

allowed — crypto-assets are not legal tender but may be used for payments; gold and synthetic-dollar tokens are not 'payment stablecoins' under the GENIUS Act and do not get its reserve and redemption protections.Read moreShow less

Tax

Digital assets are property (IRS): every sale, swap or spend of these tokens can produce a capital gain or loss, and rewards or yield received are generally income. No IRS guidance specific to gold-backed tokens (for example, whether they are taxed like collectibles) was identified in this research.Read moreShow less

Gold tokens and crypto-backed dollar tokens are legal to buy and hold in the UK through FCA-registered firms. Under the new law, only tokens pegged to a fiat currency can be 'stablecoins', so gold tokens are treated as ordinary cryptoassets, while dollar tokens backed by other crypto may count as stablecoins. From 25 October 2027 the full FCA licensing regime applies to platforms and UK stablecoin issuers. Gains are subject to Capital Gains Tax; a planned stablecoin exemption would not cover gold tokens.

Regulators

Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Bank of England, HM Treasury, HMRC

Licensing

Now: FCA registration under the money laundering regulations and the cryptoasset financial promotions regime. New FSMA regime: FCA final rules published 30 Jun 2026 (including stablecoin issuance); authorisation gateway 30 Sep 2026 to 28 Feb 2027; regime in force 25 Oct 2027. Issuing a qualifying stablecoin in the UK will need FCA authorisation; the regime focuses on UK issuance and does not ban overseas-issued tokens. Gold-backed tokens are covered by the general rules for trading platforms, intermediaries and custodians rather than the stablecoin issuer rules. Retail cryptoasset derivatives remain banned.Read moreShow less

Payments

allowed — not legal tender and no ban on paying with cryptoassets. HM Treasury's consultation of 14 Jul 2026 on bringing stablecoins used for payments into the payments perimeter concerns UK-issued qualifying stablecoins, not gold tokens.Read moreShow less

Tax

Capital Gains Tax on disposals (selling, swapping or spending), 18% or 24% depending on the income band, with a £3,000 annual allowance; some receipts such as rewards can be income. HMRC draft legislation (13 Jul 2026) would exempt disposals of 'eligible stablecoins' from CGT from 6 Apr 2027; whether crypto-collateralised dollar tokens would be eligible was not verified, and gold tokens are not fiat-referenced.Read moreShow less

In Bahrain, gold tokens and crypto-backed dollar tokens are treated as ordinary crypto-assets. The central bank's 2025 stablecoin rules cover only coins backed one-to-one by the dinar, the dollar or other approved fiat currencies, so these tokens get no stablecoin-specific protection. Use only CBB-licensed platforms, and check whether they offer the token you want. Individuals pay no tax on gains.

Regulators

Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB)

Licensing

Exchanges, brokers, custodians and other crypto-asset service providers need a CBB crypto-asset licence under the CRA Module. Only fiat-backed single-currency stablecoins can be issued under the SIO Module by CBB-licensed issuers; there is no licensing route for issuing gold-backed or crypto-collateralised stablecoins in or from Bahrain identified in the sources. Whether CBB licensees list foreign gold tokens (e.g. PAXG, XAUT) or synthetic dollars (e.g. DAI, USDe) was not verified.Read moreShow less

Payments

uncertain — no general ban identified; not legal tender; these tokens are outside the fiat stablecoin framework.

Tax

No personal income or capital gains tax in Bahrain (general rule; no crypto-specific tax guidance identified).

In Indonesia, gold tokens and crypto-backed dollar tokens are treated like any other crypto asset: you may trade them only on OJK-licensed platforms, and only if OJK rules admit them, and you may not use them to pay for goods or services. Each trade carries a small final income tax (0.21% on local platforms, 1% on foreign ones). There are no special rules for these token types.

Regulators

Otoritas Jasa Keuangan (OJK), Bank Indonesia (BI), Directorate General of Taxes

Licensing

OJK licenses exchanges, clearing, custodians and crypto asset traders under POJK 27/2024 (as amended); supervision moved from Bappebti to OJK on 10 Jan 2025, and PADK OJK No. 3 of 2026 on reporting by digital financial asset trading operators took effect on 1 Sep 2026. Only crypto assets admitted for trading under OJK rules may be traded by licensed traders; this research did not verify whether specific gold tokens (e.g. PAXG, XAUT) or synthetic dollars (e.g. DAI, USDe) are on the admitted list. No issuer regime for commodity-backed or synthetic stablecoins was identified.Read moreShow less

Payments

banned — Bank Indonesia does not recognise virtual currency as a payment instrument and bars payment system operators from processing virtual-currency transactions.Read moreShow less

Tax

PMK 50/2025 (from 1 Aug 2025): final income tax of 0.21% of transaction value via domestic platforms and 1% via foreign platforms; crypto asset transfers are VAT-exempt.Read moreShow less

Kazakhstan lets national licensed platforms trade only crypto assets on the National Bank's approved list. DAI and USDe are on that list, but newer synthetic dollars (USDS, GHO, USDD, USDf) and gold tokens (PAXG, XAUT) are not, so they cannot be traded through national licensees outside the AIFC. The AIFC financial centre has its own licensing regime. Crypto is not legal tender; a planned income-tax exemption for trades on licensed platforms still needs implementing law.

Regulators

National Bank of Kazakhstan (NBK), Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market (ARDFM), Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA, AIFC)Read moreShow less

Licensing

Outside the AIFC, NBK licenses unsecured digital asset exchange operators and registers trading-platform and DFA-platform operators from 1 May 2026; within the AIFC, AFSA licenses providers under its own rules (the AIFC's permitted token list was not verified in this research). No issuer regime for commodity-backed or synthetic stablecoins was identified.Read moreShow less

Payments

restricted — not legal tender and no general regime for paying for goods with crypto; a presidential decree of July 2026 envisages stablecoins in cross-border settlements, without reference to gold or synthetic tokens in the sources.Read moreShow less

Tax

A presidential decree of July 2026 provides for exempting individuals' income from digital-asset transactions through Kazakh licensed providers from personal income tax; implementation in tax legislation was not verified.Read moreShow less

Gold tokens and crypto-backed dollar tokens have no special status in Malaysia: like other crypto, they may be traded only on exchanges registered with the Securities Commission, and only if that exchange has admitted them. Using unregistered exchanges that target Malaysians is not permitted. There is no stablecoin law yet; the central bank is testing ringgit stablecoins only. Individual investors generally pay no capital gains tax.

Regulators

Securities Commission Malaysia (SC), Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Inland Revenue Board (LHDN)

Licensing

Digital asset exchanges (DAX) must be registered with the SC as Recognized Market Operators (five as at 20 Jul 2026); the SC issued revised Guidelines on Recognized Markets for DAX on 20 May 2026. Which tokens can be traded depends on each DAX's admission under SC rules; this research did not verify whether any registered DAX lists gold tokens (e.g. PAXG, XAUT) or synthetic dollars (e.g. DAI, USDe). No issuer regime for such tokens was identified.Read moreShow less

Payments

restricted — not legal tender and no general crypto payment regime; BNM pilots cover ringgit stablecoins and tokenised deposits for wholesale use.

Tax

No capital gains tax for individual investors; gains from trading that amounts to a business can be taxed under the Income Tax Act 1967.

Pakistan regulates all virtual assets, including gold tokens and crypto-backed dollar tokens, under the Virtual Assets Act 2026, but the regime is brand new: full licences, token rules and stablecoin rules are still pending, and licences carry a Shariah-compliance requirement. Use only platforms that applied to PVARA, and expect the rules to change.

Regulators

Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA), State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP)

Licensing

The Virtual Assets Act 2026 makes PVARA the licensing authority for exchanges, custodians, token issuers and other service providers; unlicensed operation is punishable by a fine of up to PKR 50 million and up to five years' imprisonment. Licence applicants must, among other conditions, ensure Sharia compliance. Existing firms had to apply for a no-objection certificate by 5 Sep 2026 or cease operations; full licences had not been confirmed as of that date. Which tokens licensees may offer, including gold tokens and synthetic dollars, was not addressed in the sources.Read moreShow less

Payments

restricted — banks may serve PVARA-licensed providers since Apr 2026 but may not invest in, trade or hold virtual assets themselves; consumer payment use is not addressed in the sources.Read moreShow less

Qatar does not permit services in crypto-backed or synthetic dollar tokens: its financial-centre rules treat them as excluded stablecoins, and the central bank bars banks from dealing in crypto. Tokenised commodities such as gold are allowed only within the Qatar Financial Centre's own tokenisation framework; no licensed provider of foreign gold tokens such as PAXG or XAUT was found. Residents have no local investor protection for these tokens.

Regulators

Qatar Central Bank (QCB), Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Authority (QFCRA), Qatar Financial Markets Authority (QFMA)

Licensing

No licensing for services in Excluded Tokens; the QFCRA's 2019 restriction on virtual asset services remains in place for them. Onshore, the Qatar Central Bank's 2018 circular described bitcoin as illegal and barred banks operating in Qatar from dealing in it. The QFC framework licenses tokenisation of real-world assets, including commodities, within the QFC; whether any gold token is issued or offered under it was not verified.Read moreShow less

Payments

banned

Since 1 September 2026 Russians may buy crypto legally only through intermediaries regulated by the Bank of Russia, after passing a test. Draft central bank rules would let ordinary investors buy only Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT, so gold tokens and crypto-backed dollar tokens would be available only to qualified investors; check whether the final rules were adopted. Paying for goods and services in Russia with crypto is banned. Russia-linked platforms face heavy sanctions, and holders can face freezing risk.

Regulators

Bank of Russia, Ministry of Finance, Federal Tax Service, Rosfinmonitoring

Licensing

From 1 Sep 2026 crypto trading goes through intermediaries under Bank of Russia oversight, with a transition until 1 Jul 2027 to obtain licences; all investors must pass a test. Non-qualified investors may buy only the most liquid cryptocurrencies, up to RUB 300,000 a year per intermediary; a Bank of Russia draft instruction of 11 Aug 2026 names only Bitcoin, Ethereum and Tether USDT as eligible for them, so gold tokens (e.g. PAXG, XAUT) and synthetic dollars (e.g. DAI, USDe) would be open to qualified investors only. Adoption of the final instruction was not confirmed as of this research.Read moreShow less

Payments

banned for domestic payments; crypto is permitted for foreign-trade settlements between residents and non-residents.

Tax

Holdings of cryptocurrencies recorded abroad must be reported to the tax authorities; detailed personal income tax treatment of gains was not re-verified in this pass.Read moreShow less

Saudi Arabia has no rules for gold tokens or crypto-backed dollar tokens, and regulators have warned since 2018 that virtual currencies are unregulated and nobody is licensed to offer them. Holding them is not expressly banned, but residents using foreign platforms have no local investor protection. No crypto or stablecoin licensing framework had been published as of this research.

Regulators

Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), Capital Market Authority (CMA)

Licensing

None in force: no licensing regime for crypto exchanges, brokers or token issuers, including issuers of commodity-backed or synthetic stablecoins, has been published.Read moreShow less

Payments

restricted — not legal tender; no licensed payment use; regulators warn against dealing with unlicensed parties.

Gold tokens and crypto-backed dollar tokens are legal to hold and trade in Turkey through platforms on the Capital Markets Board's list, on the same terms as other crypto assets, but they cannot be used to pay for goods or services. There are no special rules for these token types and no deposit protection. There is no specific crypto tax at the moment, although proposals have been made.

Regulators

Capital Markets Board (SPK/CMB), Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye (CBRT), MASAK (Financial Crimes Investigation Board)

Licensing

An SPK licence is mandatory for crypto asset service providers (communiqués in force since March 2025); firms on SPK's provisional operating list continue while applications are assessed, and SPK states that being on the list is not an authorisation. Operating without authorisation is a criminal offence. No issuer regime for commodity-backed or synthetic stablecoins was identified, and which of these tokens each platform lists was not verified.Read moreShow less

Payments

banned — CBRT Regulation on the Disuse of Crypto Assets in Payments (in force 30 Apr 2021): crypto assets may not be used directly or indirectly in payments.Read moreShow less

Tax

No specific income tax on crypto gains enacted as of this research; a March 2026 proposal (withholding tax on crypto gains and a transaction tax on crypto sales and transfers) was removed from the omnibus bill later that month, and officials signalled a revised version could return as a separate bill.Read moreShow less

Uzbek residents may hold gold tokens and crypto-backed dollar tokens but may buy and sell them only through locally licensed providers for soum, not on foreign exchanges, and only if those providers list them. Crypto is not legal tender; a 2026 testing regime allows supervised stablecoin payments, but it is not clear whether these token types qualify. Crypto transactions are reported to be tax-exempt.

Regulators

National Agency of Perspective Projects (NAPP), Central Bank of Uzbekistan (CBU)

Licensing

NAPP licenses crypto-exchanges, crypto-depositories, crypto-shops and mining pools. Since 1 Jan 2023 residents may buy and sell crypto-assets only through domestic licensed providers for soum; foreign exchanges are off-limits. Residents may not issue stable tokens or unsecured tokens. Whether domestic providers list gold tokens (e.g. PAXG, XAUT) or synthetic dollars (e.g. DAI, USDe) was not verified.Read moreShow less

Payments

restricted — crypto-assets are not legal tender; a testing regime run by NAPP and the Central Bank from 1 Jan 2026 lets stablecoins be used for payments under supervision, and the reporting does not say whether gold or synthetic tokens are eligible.Read moreShow less

Tax

Crypto-asset transactions of individuals and legal entities are reported to be exempt from tax (Elliptic country guide); not re-checked against the primary decree.Read moreShow less