As a tech-friendly region, Dubai is never short of new and promising projects, including crypto and blockchain,  but the influx of new cryptocurrencies makes it harder for newcomers to distinguish shady campaigns from reliable ones. 

The Dubai Media Office announced that the authorities have never approved a digital currency named Dubai Coin, which saw a 1,000% jump when the project launched as “the official digital currency of Dubai” earlier this week.

“It’s not the official cryptocurrency of the city,” the announcement warns. “The website promoting Dubai Coin is an elaborate phishing campaign that is designed to steal personal information from its visitors.”

Following the announcement, major listing platforms CoinMarketCap and CoinGecko have removed Dubai Coin from their pages. The price of the coin crashed by more than 50% since the official statement, according to data from TradingView.

The now-defunct website of Dubai Coin claims that it’s a project powered by ArabianChain Technology, a public blockchain developed in the region. ArabianChain was quick to announce, one day prior to the officials, that the Dubai Coin website is not related to the company. They also called the project website a scam.

According to the ArabianChain website, DBIX is the native digital currency of the platform. But it’s not related to Dubai Coin. “DBIX is the fuel of Arabianchain and the first minable digital currency in the region,” the official description reads.

A now-removed press release about the Dubai Coin claims that its “been launched by Dubai, and is set to become the city’s de-facto digital currency.”

Dubai is known for its positive attitude towards blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. Earlies this year, The Dubai Financial Services Authority ramped up its efforts to create a standardized framework for cryptocurrency regulations in the emirate.