UAE’s ruya becomes first Islamic bank to offer in-app Bitcoin trading
ruya, the UAE’s digital-first Islamic bank, has become the first Islamic bank globally to enable customers to buy and sell Bitcoin directly through its mobile app. The new service sits within ruya’s broader investment offering, built to support ethical wealth building and long-term financial growth. It is delivered in partnership with licensed virtual asset provider Fuze.
Customers can now access Bitcoin from the same app they use for everyday banking, with governance and oversight handled by ruya’s internal committees and risk framework. Fuze provides the underlying digital asset infrastructure, while ruya retains control of the customer relationship, product design and standards.
Christoph Koster, CEO of ruya, said the bank aims to shape the future of finance in the UAE by combining innovation with clear guardrails. “By enabling our customers to invest in Bitcoin through our platform, we empower them to participate in the digital economy responsibly. All Bitcoin investments available via ruya are fully Shari’ah-compliant, providing customers with confidence and clarity,” he says.
Why it matters
The launch comes at a time of intense and accelerating interest in digital assets in the UAE. According to the Chainalysis 2024 Geography of Crypto Report, the country recorded more than US$30 billion in cryptocurrency inflows between July 2023 and June 2024, a 42% year-on-year increase. The report also points to rapid growth in decentralised finance activity over the same period, with value received by DeFi services rising sharply and volumes on decentralised exchanges increasing from roughly $6 billion to S$11.3 billion.
Chainalysis links much of this growth to regulatory clarity from bodies such as the Securities & Commodities Authority (SCA) and Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), which have built dedicated frameworks for virtual asset activity. Against that backdrop, ruya’s move effectively channels part of this demand into a retail banking environment, where digital asset exposure sits alongside more traditional investments and is supported by established onboarding, disclosure and governance processes.
The result is a more straightforward path for customers who want to participate in the digital asset space but prefer to do so through a bank they already know, rather than through standalone trading platforms.
How ruya is designing Bitcoin access
A defining feature of the launch is how Bitcoin is being positioned inside the app. ruya is placing Bitcoin within a long-term investment framework, not as a separate trading tab. That is a deliberate design choice.
The bank is emphasising that the service is part of a curated investment offering aimed at long-term wealth creation and financial resilience. It explicitly states that it does not want to encourage speculative behaviour and is pairing the product with education, webinars, and clear guidance, rather than gamified interfaces, leaderboards, or short-term trading prompts.
That approach makes ruya’s service closer to a “Bitcoin as one sleeve in your portfolio” model than a de-facto mini-exchange embedded in a banking app. The user journey is built around transparency, risk awareness and support, with customers encouraged to understand how Bitcoin fits into their overall financial goals before committing funds.
Koster said this reflects the bank’s broader mission to offer financial solutions that deliver lasting value and support customers’ objectives over time, rather than focusing on short-term market swings.
What the partnership means for Fuze
The structure of the collaboration also highlights the role of specialist infrastructure in bringing digital assets into mainstream finance. Fuze provides the licensed, back-end virtual asset capabilities – including connectivity and operational tooling – while ruya focuses on client understanding, governance and experience.
“Our partnership with ruya brings together expertise in digital assets and Shari’ah-compliant banking, creating a platform that is both secure and ethically grounded,” says Mohammed Ali Yusuf (Mo Ali Yusuf), Co-Founder and CEO of Fuze. “Together, we are redefining how customers can approach virtual asset investing responsibly and transparently.”
For Fuze, the rollout with ruya creates a reference model for how banks can integrate virtual assets without having to build their own exchange infrastructure or custody stack. It shows how a bank-front, infra-back arrangement can deliver a seamless customer experience while clearly defining roles and responsibilities.
Global implications
Although the launch is rooted in the UAE, it carries broader implications for how banks and regulators worldwide may approach digital assets.
It demonstrates that Bitcoin can be offered inside a standard banking app as part of a diversified investment menu, with education and governance built in from the outset. It shows that banks can remain the primary interface for customers, handling suitability, disclosures and support, while relying on regulated infrastructure partners for execution and custody.
For financial institutions considering similar moves, ruya’s model offers a practical template: integrate digital assets within an existing investment framework, emphasise long-term outcomes over trading, and use partnerships to add new capabilities without compromising on controls.
For customers, it signals a gradual shift in how digital assets are accessed – increasingly through familiar, regulated channels, and increasingly framed as part of a structured approach to wealth, rather than a standalone speculative activity.