AX Coin and ARP Digital Partner to Scale Institutional Stablecoin Settlement in the GCC

AX Coin and ARP Digital have formed a strategic partnership to integrate regulated stablecoin infrastructure with institutional OTC liquidity and settlement rails across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and global markets. This collaboration is a significant step for fintech professionals as it bridges the gap between Sharia-compliant digital assets and the practical cross-border payment needs of financial institutions.

What was announced

AX Coin Bahrain B.S.C. Closed, the stablecoin issuance arm of Nasdaq-listed Solowin Holdings, is partnering with ARP Digital to bring its regulated infrastructure to institutional users. The collaboration focuses on connecting AX Coin’s on-chain capabilities with ARP Digital’s institutional OTC desk and international corridor settlement rails. This setup is designed to facilitate seamless on- and off-ramp conversions, allowing for more efficient cross-border value movement by integrating digital assets directly into existing financial workflows.

The service is aimed at a broad spectrum of institutional participants, including corporates, financial institutions, payment fintechs, and payment service providers (PSPs). By leveraging AX Coin’s status as the first licensed stablecoin issuer regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) and the world’s first Sharia-compliant stablecoin, the partnership seeks to deliver a compliant framework for moving value globally. The infrastructure provides a fully regulated issuance and reserve model, which is critical for institutions requiring high levels of transparency and legal certainty.

Geographically, the rollout will initially concentrate on Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). However, the scope of the collaboration is global, with the partnership intending to extend these capabilities across additional international markets and continents. The primary goal is to enhance interoperability between AX Coin and other stablecoin ecosystems, providing faster and more transparent settlement options than traditional banking corridors currently offer to institutional players in the region. This interoperability is intended to allow AX Coin to function as a bridge between different digital asset environments.

"This collaboration brings together two critical pieces of the stablecoin ecosystem — regulated digital money and real-world payment and liquidity infrastructure. Our objective is to make AX Coin usable across the flows that corporates and payment fintechs already depend on, while enabling faster, more transparent and more cost-efficient cross-border settlement."

Xavier George, Managing Director of AXG and CEO of AX Coin.

The companies involved

AX Coin is a regulated stablecoin issuer based in Bahrain. It operates as a subsidiary of Solowin Holdings, a company listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker AXG. AX Coin distinguishes itself in the digital asset market by being the first issuer to receive licensing from the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) for stablecoin operations, specifically focusing on Sharia-compliant financial products. This regulatory standing allows it to provide a reserve infrastructure that meets the stringent requirements of Islamic finance, catering to a market that has historically been underserved by standard digital asset products.

ARP Digital is a regulated digital capital infrastructure platform that provides institutional-grade services. The firm operates an over-the-counter (OTC) desk and maintains the necessary financial rails to connect global digital capital with the GCC region. Co-founded by Abdulla Kanoo, who also serves as Co-CEO, ARP Digital focuses on providing the liquidity and conversion capabilities required for businesses to move between fiat and digital currencies. The company’s infrastructure is built to support the high-volume settlement needs of professional financial participants, bridging the gap between traditional finance and the emerging digital asset ecosystem in the Middle East. By providing these on- and off-ramp capabilities, ARP Digital positions itself as a critical intermediary for firms looking to utilize blockchain technology without exiting the regulated financial system.

What FF News has reported before

FF News has closely followed the development of AX Coin and its parent company, Solowin Holdings, as they expand their footprint in the regulated digital asset space. In August 2026, we reported on a major milestone for the firm when AX Coin Secures World’s First Shari’a Certification for Central Bank Regulated Stablecoin. This certification was a pivotal moment for the Bahrain-based issuer, establishing its credentials in the Islamic finance sector. Additionally, the parent company has been active in other regions; we previously covered how Solowin Holdings Expands into Latin America via Strategic Partnership with ATTR. This earlier reporting highlights Solowin’s broader strategy of securing regulatory approvals and forming local partnerships to facilitate global value movement.

What this means

This partnership signals a shift in the GCC fintech landscape, moving from speculative digital asset trading toward utility-driven institutional infrastructure. By combining Sharia compliance with regulated OTC liquidity, AX Coin and ARP Digital are addressing a specific friction point: the lack of "clean" liquidity for institutional cross-border payments in the Middle East. This puts traditional correspondent banking networks under renewed pressure to justify their fees and settlement times. The move also raises questions for other regional stablecoin projects about the necessity of Sharia certification to achieve true scale within the GCC. As institutional demand for on-chain settlement grows, the focus will likely shift to how these regulated corridors handle multi-currency interoperability.