Latest news with #founders
Crypto Insight
5 hours ago
- Business
- Crypto Insight
Legal strategy matters more than ever for your crypto startup in the UAE
Opinion by: Irina Heaver, crypto lawyer. Founders who treat regulatory structuring as a central part of their go-to-market strategy are the ones who thrive in the UAE. Unfortunately, many founders view licensing as an afterthought. The UAE is not a place where you can cut corners. It is, however, a place where thoughtful, well-prepared founders are rewarded with speed, clarity and access to a highly supportive ecosystem. Contrary to some founders' beliefs, regulators are not the problem — confusion, poor planning and lack of readiness are. The crypto licensing landscape in the United Arab Emirates can be hard to grasp, so much so that even experienced venture capitalists, serial entrepreneurs and global law firms often misunderstand the regime. Let's bring some clarity to the situation. One country, two legal systems The UAE is a federal country comprising seven emirates, operating under two distinct legal systems. The mainland legal system, known as the 'onshore' regime, covers the entire UAE territory and includes over 45 economic free zones. These jurisdictions fall under the UAE's civil law and are governed by the UAE's court system. The financial free zones, Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) and Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), operate independently under English common law. They also maintain their own regulatory bodies and court systems, separate from the mainland's judicial system. Understanding this bifurcation is crucial because the regulatory authority governing your crypto activities depends mainly on the legal framework under which you choose to operate. One country, five crypto regulators Five separate authorities regulate crypto and related activities, each with its own jurisdiction, mandate and licensing framework. On the mainland side, the three relevant regulators are: The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE): regulates activities involving AED-denominated stablecoins, crypto payments and remittances, and approves foreign stablecoins. The Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA): regulates crypto exchanges, broker-dealers and token offerings that resemble securities or commodity contracts. The Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA): regulates most virtual asset service providers (VASPs) operating in Dubai, excluding those in the DIFC. In the financial free zones, there are two separate regulators: The Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA): the financial watchdog for ADGM, which developed one of the most advanced regulatory frameworks for digital assets back in 2018. The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA): the regulator for DIFC, with a cautious but evolving approach to crypto assets. This unique framework can be both a blessing and a challenge. Choosing the wrong regulator or failing to understand the scope of each authority can result in wasted time, missed opportunities or, in some cases, complete licensing failure. Choose the right regulator The right jurisdiction depends entirely on your specific business model. Here are a few common scenarios: Launch a crypto exchange Planning to become the next Binance? Be prepared to navigate a rigorous licensing path. VARA, SCA or ADGM are potential homes for you. Each has its own requirements, and none are for the faint-hearted. Issue a stablecoin If you're thinking of rivaling Tether in AED, then welcome to the grown-up table. You'll be dealing with the Central Bank of the UAE. Build a tokenized RWA platform Want to turn luxury real estate, fine art or a warehouse of whiskey into blockchain-based assets? VARA's newly introduced regime for asset-backed tokens is a must-read. And no, slapping 'utility token' on a white paper won't cut it here. Start a crypto fund Got capital to deploy and a vision to back the next crypto unicorn? It's time to become best friends with ADGM's FSRA. It's one of the most advanced digital asset frameworks out there, but make no mistake, they expect real compliance chops. Launch a payment app Are you looking to make big money moves? The Central Bank will be watching you closely. Don't expect a light-touch approach when handling customer funds. Trying to do it all Don't. Founders often want to build the entire offering in one go, which can be a recipe for regulatory burnout. It is much better to start narrow — get one license, create traction, then scale. More best practices Founders who prioritize regulatory structuring as a core element of their go-to-market strategy are the ones who succeed in the UAE. Success demands a thorough regulatory assessment from the outset, alignment of a business model with the right jurisdiction and authority and collaboration with legal experts who truly understand the local landscape. In the UAE, cutting corners is not tolerated. Founders who plan carefully and engage proactively with regulators are rewarded with speed, clarity and access to a highly supportive ecosystem. Opinion by: Irina Heaver, crypto lawyer. Source:
TechCrunch
12 hours ago
- Business
- TechCrunch
Advice on making early bets from an investor who's backed 60 successes
Navin Chaddha has backed over 60 companies that have gone public or been acquired. In this conversation, the longtime Mayfield managing partner shares what he looks for in founders, why emotional resonance still matters in early-stage investing, and where he's placing his bets in AI and beyond. Chaddha spoke at our StrictlyVC Menlo Park event in June 2025, among several other speakers whose discussions you can find here.
TechCrunch
12 hours ago
- Business
- TechCrunch
What the next generation of AI natives mean for founders and funders
Ali Partovi has helped launch the careers of a generation of elite founders through Neo. Russell Kaplan is building Cognition, the AI-native company behind Devin, the so-called 'AI software engineer.' Together, they unpack what it means to build and back technical talent in the AI age, what young founders often get wrong, and why this moment feels different from past tech waves. Partovi and Kaplan joined TechCrunch at our StrictlyVC Menlo Park event in June 2025, among several other speakers whose discussions you can find here:
Forbes
15 hours ago
- Business
- Forbes
10 Startup Jobs That Are Crucial But Rarely Hired Early Enough
Hiring is a game of leverage. Growth stage startups that think beyond the obvious roles can set ... More themselves up for faster execution and less firefighting. In this article we explore the undervalued roles in a startup team. After the very early stages, once an enterprise starts growing (organically or through funding), founders often focus on hiring exclusively developers and salespeople. While those roles are essential, many equally important functions are either delayed or handled ad hoc, leading to inefficiencies, burnout, or missed opportunities. This article explores roles that are often underestimated or under-prioritized in the early days but can dramatically improve startup execution, speed, and resilience. 1. Generalist Operations Lead Every startup needs someone who can connect the dots across tools, people, and workflows. Yet early operations hires are often postponed until 'things are chaotic,' which is precisely when it becomes hardest to onboard one. Early-stage ops leads don't just 'keep the lights on'; they handle finance, vendor setup, customer support, legal paperwork, internal tooling, and logistics. Hiring someone who thrives in ambiguity can free up the founders to focus on growth or product, which is extremely important if the founder or founders are technical specialists. 2. Technical Program Manager Even startups with a solid engineering team often delay hiring a TPM, thinking it's only needed at scale. But the earlier you have someone who can manage cross-functional planning, organize releases, and flag bottlenecks, the faster your product can evolve. This role becomes critical when product, engineering, and design start pulling in different directions. At companies like Stripe and Airbnb, early TPMs were instrumental in translating vision into execution. 3. Customer Success Support is reactive. Success is proactive. Early-stage startups often overlook customer success until churn becomes a problem, but by then, valuable insight has already been lost. Hiring someone who can onboard customers, collect feedback, and monitor usage helps prevent silent churn and can increase retention early. Startups like Notion and Figma invested early in community-style customer engagement, which gave them feedback loops before they scaled. 4. Recruiter Оr Talent Lead Founders often do all hiring themselves early on, which makes sense, up to a point. But once you're hiring for more than one role at a time or scaling beyond referrals, a dedicated recruiter or talent lead can save enormous time. This role pays off quickly: crafting job descriptions, managing funnels, and keeping momentum in candidate conversations is a full-time job. Startups that delay this hire often miss great candidates due to slow or inconsistent processes. 5. Finance And Accounting Lead Most startups wait until their first funding round is closed or until taxes are due to think about finance. But early financial hygiene - managing burn, forecasting runway, and tracking invoices, often prevents costly mistakes down the line. An experienced part-time finance operator or early controller can help founders make better decisions without relying only on gut feeling. 6. Product Marketing Marketing isn't just for after product-market fit. A product marketer can help shape how the product is positioned from day one, run early customer interviews, and test narratives. In startups like Slack and Superhuman, early PMMs played a crucial role in crafting language that resonated. Without this role, products often struggle to articulate value, which slows down both user acquisition and fundraising. 7. Internal Tools Engineer / No-Code Ops As teams grow, inefficiencies compound. Startups that invest early in internal tooling via software engineers or no-code automation specialists scale faster and with fewer headaches. This hire helps automate onboarding, reporting, internal dashboards, and repetitive tasks. It's a multiplier role — especially in lean teams. 8. Design Systems Or UX Ops Founders often hire designers to work on user interfaces, but few think about UX infrastructure. A systems thinker in design can help enforce consistency, build component libraries, and reduce the design-to-dev gap. For startups shipping fast and often, this role helps avoid messy product interfaces that become expensive to clean up later. It also keeps cross-functional teams aligned. 9. Compliance/Legal Advisor This is especially critical in regulated sectors like fintech, healthtech, or anything involving user data. Waiting too long to get legal and compliance advice can result in technical rework, regulatory delays, or worse — penalties. This doesn't need to be a full-time hire early on. But having someone on retainer who understands your space can de-risk future launches and investor due diligence. 10. Content/Documentation Specialist Content is often seen as a growth function, but early documentation - onboarding guides, internal SOPs, product notes, and public help docs - sets the tone for scalability. Startups with strong documentation reduce onboarding time (for employees and users), get fewer support tickets, and enable async collaboration. This role can start part-time or as a hybrid content/marketing hire.
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Only 2 exhibitor tables up for grabs at TechCrunch All Stage — claim by June 29
This is not a drill. If your startup exists to power the growth of other startups or is the kind of innovation tech leaders need to see firsthand, your moment is now. TechCrunch All Stage hits Boston's SoWa Power Station on July 15 — and just remain. Yes, only two, and only until June 29. Tables for TC All Stage have been flying, and this is truly your last chance to claim your place in front of founders and investors across all stages. All exhibiting startups receive the following perks — and more. For the complete breakdown, check out the TC All Stage exhibitor page. Reserve your table in minutes — no approvals, no wait. Just visit the exhibitor page, register, and it's yours. This isn't the time to hesitate. You clicked into this article because you know it's time to showcase your brand and make an impact. Book your table here.
