DUBAI (Reuters) – MANTRA, a blockchain platform focused on real-world assets (RWA), has signed a deal with Dubai developer DAMAC Group to tokenize assets in the Middle East worth at least $1 billion. dollars, the two companies said Thursday.

Asset tokenization enables rights or ownership of assets, including RWAs, to be converted into digital tokens on a blockchain, which can then be owned and traded online.

DAMAC, one of Dubai’s largest developers whose assets include real estate and data centers, has been investing in data centers around the world.

On Tuesday, its chairman Hussain Sajwani and US President-elect Donald Trump announced they would invest $20 billion in data centers in the US over the next few years.

“DAMAC is always exploring new technologies to enhance our product offering. The partnership with MANTRA is a natural extension of our commitment to innovation and forward-thinking solutions,” said the developer’s General Manager of Sales and Development , Amira Sajwani in a statement.

Its Middle East assets will be available early this year on the MANTRA chain, the two companies said.

Last year, MANTRA agreed with developer MAG Property Development to approve real estate assets with a global value of $500 million, starting with a residential project in Dubai, which is the tourism and commercial center of the Gulf.

The UAE and the city aim to become a global hub for digital assets, including the crypto industry, and are working to attract some of the biggest companies in the sector and to develop regulation of virtual assets.

In 2017, the Dubai Land Department launched its blockchain platform using a database to record real estate contracts, including leases and registrations, and link them to utility and telecommunication accounts.

(Reporting by Federico Maccioni, editing by Barbara Lewis)