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Network International has launched an in-store pilot allowing shoppers to pay with DDSC, the dirham-backed stablecoin, at two UAE retail locations, Marks & Spencer at Dubai Festival City and LuLu Hypermarket at Khalidiyah Mall in Abu Dhabi. The pilot, announced 9-10 September 2026, runs entirely on Network International’s existing point-of-sale terminals, with no separate checkout system required for participating retailers.
How the pilot works
Customers with a supported DDSC wallet scan a QR code displayed at the point of sale. Once the payment is confirmed, the merchant receives a notification through Network International’s existing acceptance infrastructure, and can choose to settle the transaction in DDSC, paid directly into a supported wallet, or in UAE dirhams, depending on the arrangement agreed with Network International.
DDSC is pegged 1:1 to the dirham and operates on ADI Chain, the layer-2 blockchain built by Abu Dhabi’s ADI Foundation. The stablecoin is developed jointly by International Holding Company (IHC), First Abu Dhabi Bank and Sirius International Holding, and is licensed by the Central Bank of the UAE under its Payment Token Services Regulation, with approval granted in February 2026.
Murat Cagri Suzer, group chief executive of Network International, said,
“Merchants will be able to accept payments in DDSC and have the flexibility to settle in stablecoin.”
Ajay Hans Raj Bhatia, chief executive of Sirius International Holding, framed “the pilot as turning digital currencies into a practical reality for businesses and consumers.”
Why it matters
For stablecoin adoption in everyday retail
Most UAE stablecoin coverage to date has centred on institutional transactions, custody licences and wholesale settlement. This pilot moves DDSC into ordinary retail checkout, at a supermarket and a department store, without requiring merchants to install new hardware. That distinction, existing infrastructure versus a bespoke crypto checkout system, is often what determines whether a retail stablecoin pilot actually scales past a handful of flagship locations.
For Network International’s payments infrastructure business
Network International already processes payments across a large share of the region’s card infrastructure. Layering stablecoin settlement onto that existing rail, rather than building separate crypto-specific acceptance infrastructure, lets the company test digital-currency demand without duplicating its core payments business.
What’s next
Network International hasn’t disclosed how many additional retailers or locations will join the pilot, a timeline for wider rollout, or transaction volumes once the pilot is live. Whether merchants actually choose to settle in DDSC rather than converting straight to dirhams is the more concrete detail to watch once real transaction data exists.
FAQ
What is DDSC?
A stablecoin pegged 1:1 to the UAE dirham, developed by International Holding Company, First Abu Dhabi Bank and Sirius International Holding, running on ADI Chain and licensed by the Central Bank of the UAE.
Where can shoppers use DDSC in this pilot?
At Marks & Spencer in Dubai Festival City and LuLu Hypermarket at Khalidiyah Mall in Abu Dhabi, the two locations named in the pilot.
Do merchants need new hardware to accept DDSC?
No. The pilot runs on Network International’s existing point-of-sale terminals; customers pay by scanning a QR code.
Can merchants choose to receive dirhams instead of DDSC?
Yes. Merchants can settle transactions in either DDSC or UAE dirhams, depending on their arrangement with Network International.
Is this the UAE’s first stablecoin retail pilot?
Multiple outlets reporting on this launch describe it as the UAE’s first in-store DDSC pilot specifically; it follows CBUAE’s Payment Token Services Regulation approval for DDSC in February 2026.
Editor’s Take: Network International built this on solutions it already operates, which is a genuinely different bet than most stablecoin pilots that ask merchants to adopt entirely new infrastructure. If DDSC adoption stalls anywhere, it’s more likely to be on the demand side, whether enough shoppers actually hold and want to spend a dirham stablecoin day to day, than on the merchant-acceptance side this pilot was built to solve. Two locations is a genuine pilot, not a rollout, and Network International hasn’t said how quickly, or whether, this expands beyond Marks & Spencer and LuLu. Worth checking back once real transaction volume exists.