# MidChains Partners With Standard Chartered for Fiat Settlement and Client Money Accounts

> MidChains has partnered with Standard Chartered to add fiat settlement, segregated client money accounts and correspondent banking to its VARA-licensed digital asset platform.

- Published: 2026-11-12T06:48:40+00:00
- Section: Partnerships
- Author: News Desk
- URL: https://newsforagent.com/news/2026-11-12/midchains-standard-chartered-banking-partnership
- Source: [GlobeNewswire](https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/11/12/3401225/0/en/midchains-and-standard-chartered-establish-strategic-banking-partnership.html)

## Key takeaways

- Standard Chartered will provide MidChains with fiat settlement, segregated client money accounts and correspondent banking.
- MidChains holds a VARA Broker-Dealer licence with reference number VL/25/04/008 and has operated as a regulated entity since 2019.
- MidChains CEO Basil Al Askari said institutional capital moves continuously between traditional and digital markets.

MidChains FZE, a digital asset platform licensed by the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, announced a strategic banking partnership with Standard Chartered on November 12, 2026, under which the bank will provide fiat settlement, segregated client money accounts and correspondent banking. [GlobeNewswire](https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/11/12/3401225/0/en/midchains-and-standard-chartered-establish-strategic-banking-partnership.html) published the announcement.

## What Standard Chartered Will Provide MidChains

Under the partnership, Standard Chartered will support [MidChains](https://akta.pro/company-profiles/000714y/midchains) with banking services covering fiat settlement capabilities, segregated client money accounts and correspondent banking. The company said these services will power its day-to-day operations and enable efficient settlement.

MidChains operates as a VARA-licensed digital asset platform providing broker-dealer services to retail, institutional and qualified investors. The company said the partnership connects institutional digital asset activity with the banking infrastructure behind fiat settlement.

Rola Abu Manneh, chief executive officer for the UAE, Middle East and Pakistan at Standard Chartered, said: "The UAE has established itself as one of the world's leading regulatory environments for digital assets and a global centre for financial activity." Basil Al Askari, chief executive officer of MidChains, said: "Institutional capital moves continuously between traditional and digital markets, and the infrastructure supporting that activity must keep pace."

## MidChains' Regulatory and Funding Record

MidChains has operated as a regulated financial institution since 2019, according to akta.pro [company records](https://akta.pro/company-data). The same records show MidChains is authorized and regulated by VARA as a Virtual Asset Service Provider offering Broker-Dealer Services with reference number VL/25/04/008.

The records list two funding rounds: a seed round in August 2019 with one investor and a Series A in May 2022 with two investors. MidChains also achieved ISO/IEC 27001 certification for information security management, and in 2026 launched a Partnerships product line enabling partners to offer tokenized real estate exposure, digital asset rewards and tokenization initiatives to their end clients.

## MidChains CEO on Sovereign Bitcoin Buying

In June 2026, Al Askari said sovereign wealth funds were accumulating spot Bitcoin, indicating the current price level had become attractive to institutional investors, [ChainCatcher](https://akta.pro/news-signals) reported. MEXC Exchange reported that, according to Al Askari, at least one and possibly two sovereign wealth funds had been accumulating spot Bitcoin at current price levels, which he viewed as a signal of growing institutional interest.

MidChains lists institutional OTC execution, regulated on and off ramps, and stablecoin-enabled corporate treasury execution and cross-border settlement among its services on its [website](https://midchains.com).

## Companies in this story

- [MidChains company profile](https://akta.pro/company-profiles/000714y/midchains) · website: https://midchains.com

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