Standard Chartered will handle fiat settlement, hold segregated client money accounts and provide correspondent banking for Dubai-based digital asset platform MidChains FZE, the two firms said on November 12, 2026, in a tie-up that links a regulated crypto broker-dealer to the plumbing of the conventional banking system.

Under the arrangement, the London-headquartered bank will support MidChains’ day-to-day operations, including the cash leg of digital asset trades. Segregated accounts keep customer funds apart from the company’s own balance sheet, while correspondent banking allows payments to move between institutions.

Rola Abu Manneh, chief executive for the UAE, Middle East and Pakistan at Standard Chartered, said the country has…