Digital Dirham.

Definition

The Digital Dirham is the Central Bank of the UAE's CBDC — the digital, central-bank-issued form of the UAE dirham. It's already legal tender under UAE law, ahead of most global CBDC pilots, which remain in trial phases without full legal-tender status.

Where the rollout actually stands

In November 2025, the UAE government executed its first government financial transaction using the Digital Dirham — settled over mBridge in roughly two minutes. Through 2026, the rollout is expanding gradually into peer-to-peer, commercial, and cross-border use cases, with full implementation targeted for late 2026 — at which point all licensed UAE financial institutions will be required to support it. The Central Bank of the UAE has said it will keep assessing mBridge alongside alternative bilateral and multilateral arrangements, rather than committing exclusively to one cross-border network.

Why this specific CBDC matters most to ImmiCrypt

Dubai is ImmiCrypt's global headquarters function (see About), and the Digital Dirham is, alongside India's e₹, the most advanced CBDC in either of our home markets. No CBI/RBI program accepts Digital Dirham settlement today — this is forward-looking infrastructure, not a live payment method in any program in our directory yet. Our Government & CBDC partnerships vertical is built around being ready the moment that changes.