Binance Ties with UAE Royalty: Sovereign Fund MGX Invests $2 Billion in Crypto—Is Binance Going Low-Valuation to "Make Friends"?
TechFlow Selected TechFlow Selected
Binance Ties with UAE Royalty: Sovereign Fund MGX Invests $2 Billion in Crypto—Is Binance Going Low-Valuation to "Make Friends"?
This deal not only injected ample capital into Binance but also brought strategic endorsement, resource support, and policy protection from UAE sovereign capital.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsAuthor: Nancy, PANews
Following months of speculation and acquisition rumors, Binance officially announced on the evening of March 12 a $2 billion investment from Abu Dhabi-based institutional investor MGX (Mubadala G42 X). This marks Binance's first-ever institutional funding round in its history and sets a new record for the largest single investment in the cryptocurrency industry to date. Beyond injecting substantial capital, this deal brings strategic endorsement, resource support, and policy protection from UAE sovereign capital.
Binance Welcomes UAE’s Most Powerful Capital: MGX Invests $2 Billion in Crypto Push
On March 12, Binance formally announced a $2 billion investment agreement with MGX, an Abu Dhabi-headquartered investment firm. MGX has acquired a minority stake in Binance, marking its debut entry into the blockchain and digital asset sector. This is reportedly the largest single investment in crypto history, said to have been executed entirely in stablecoins—providing Binance with robust financial backing.
While the size of the investment itself is significant, market attention has largely focused on MGX’s high-profile background. Established in 2024, Abu Dhabi’s MGX is a joint venture between Mubadala Investment Company and AI giant G42—a true powerhouse alliance.
Mubadala is a heavyweight among global sovereign wealth funds. Its predecessor, Mubadala Development Company, was founded in 2002 as a fully state-owned entity by the Abu Dhabi government. In 2017, the government merged it with the International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) to form Mubadala Investment Company. As of the end of 2023, Mubadala managed over $300 billion in assets, placing it among the world’s top ten sovereign wealth funds. It has established deep partnerships with global giants such as Microsoft, BlackRock, and SoftBank.
G42 is a government-backed pioneer in artificial intelligence and cloud computing, serving as a key driver of AI innovation in the UAE. The company counts Mubadala, U.S. private equity leader Silver Lake, and Microsoft among its major investors, while maintaining strategic alliances with tech leaders including OpenAI, NVIDIA, Dell, and Cisco.
Beyond the institutional strength, the figure behind MGX warrants even greater attention. Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan, chairman of MGX’s board, is one of the UAE’s core power figures. He is the sixth son of the UAE’s founding president, Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, and younger brother of current UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
As a key member of Abu Dhabi’s royal family, Tahnoun serves not only as Deputy Ruler of Abu Dhabi and National Security Advisor but also oversees critical institutions including G42, Mubadala, ADQ, International Holding Company (IHC), and First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB). His commercial empire spans AI, energy, finance, and cryptocurrencies, driving Abu Dhabi’s transformation from an oil-dependent economy to a technology-driven nation. According to Bloomberg’s 2023 estimate, the total value of assets under his control reaches approximately $1.5 trillion.
Tahnoun is known for his low profile and enigmatic presence—often seen wearing sunglasses and rarely granting media interviews, leaving little public knowledge about his personal life. The Financial Times has described him as “a shadowy player in the desert,” while The Economist once dubbed him “the brain behind the UAE.”
Tahnoun views AI as a cornerstone of national future development. Since its founding in March 2024, MGX has invested in leading AI firms such as OpenAI, xAI, and Databricks, and participated in major AI initiatives like Stargate and GAIIP. Notably, in January, MGX announced plans to contribute around $7 billion to the “Stargate Project,” an AI initiative involving OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle.
It is widely speculated that Binance CEO Richard Teng played a pivotal role in securing this investment. In Binance’s official statement regarding the MGX deal, the company emphasized Teng’s prior leadership at the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), where he helped shape some of the world’s earliest crypto regulatory frameworks—an experience now central to Binance’s compliance strategy. Before officially becoming CEO, Teng was promoted four times within less than two years at Binance, a rise described as rocket-fast.
Additionally, Binance’s earlier disclosures—such as proving reserves primarily held in stablecoins and spinning off its investment arm Binance Labs into an independent family office, YZi Labs, by the end of last year—are believed by the community to have facilitated MGX’s valuation assessment ahead of the investment.
Rejecting Financial Investors: Is the UAE Becoming Binance’s New “Safe Haven”?
Though Binance did not disclose its post-investment valuation, market speculation suggests that if MGX holds between 5% and 10% of equity—as CZ previously hinted at considering single-digit percentage fundraising—the valuation would place Binance at $20–40 billion. This is far below the $200–300 billion range rumored during discussions with Singapore’s sovereign fund in 2021. Clearly, the UAE secured a favorable deal, while Binance appears to be prioritizing strategic alignment over capital, effectively “making friends” to gain sovereign-level protection.
As one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, Binance has long faced regulatory pressure, forcing it to operate across multiple jurisdictions without a fixed headquarters. However, in recent years, the UAE has increasingly become a key operational and strategic hub for Binance.
MGX organized a gathering in Abu Dhabi featuring CZ and OpenAI’s founder (Image source: Internet)
According to official data, Binance employs around 1,000 staff in the UAE—about 20% of its global workforce—and maintains offices in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi. On the regulatory front, Binance has obtained a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) and received “in-principle approval” (IPA) from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), providing legal legitimacy and a foundation for expansion in the region.
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) is now a UAE citizen and owns property in Dubai. He has repeatedly expressed confidence in the UAE’s crypto ecosystem. In a late-year interview, Richard Teng noted that the UAE is “highly attractive” as a potential headquarters for Binance, though he declined to comment when asked whether Abu Dhabi or Dubai would emerge as the dominant contender.
The UAE’s proactive crypto policies are considered a major reason for Binance’s deepening presence. Since 2021, the country has rolled out forward-looking initiatives such as Dubai’s “Virtual Asset Strategy” and ADGM’s financial innovation framework, aiming to position itself as a global digital asset hub. This regulatory-friendly environment offers Binance a de facto “safe haven,” and the MGX investment is widely interpreted as a formal endorsement by the UAE state.
In reality, as the world’s largest exchange by trading volume, Binance possesses strong profitability. PANews previously reported that CZ disclosed early on that Binance’s net profit in 2022 was $1 billion on $5.5 billion in revenue—representing an 18.18% margin. Based on this, Binance likely generated over $8.87 billion in cumulative profits between 2021 and 2023. Back in 2018, Binance famously rejected an investment from Sequoia Capital, even engaging in a brief legal dispute. At the time, CZ made clear that Binance did not need outside funding and would only consider partnering with VCs capable of helping the exchange collaborate with regulators and secure operating licenses.
Years later, Binance co-founder He Yi recently reiterated: “We welcome sovereign wealth funds—but financial investors can skip.” This statement underscores that Binance is seeking more than just capital from the UAE—it wants policy shelter and growth opportunities. Whether other national sovereign funds will follow suit is now a topic of widespread speculation, with rumors suggesting that sovereign funds from other Middle Eastern nations and even U.S.-based BlackRock have had preliminary talks with Binance.
Will Binance bring on another strategic investor? And could future endorsements open doors to new markets? Only time will tell.
Join TechFlow official community to stay tuned
Telegram:https://t.me/TechFlowDaily
X (Twitter):https://x.com/TechFlowPost
X (Twitter) EN:https://x.com/BlockFlow_News
PANews
