HODL 2025 Dubai Summit Unites Global Blockchain Leaders

HODL 2025 concluded its highly anticipated Dubai edition at Madinat Jumeirah, bringing together a diverse group of blockchain pioneers, Web3 innovators, DeFi leaders, regulators, and institutional investors from around the world. The summit, held in conjunction with the Dubai FinTech Summit, aimed to shape the future of finance in the region and reinforced HODL’s position as a leading platform for collaboration and innovation in the decentralized economy.

This edition marked a significant milestone as the 30th global edition and the first to take place following the brand’s transition from the World Blockchain Summit to HODL. The event focused on deeper engagement, broader ecosystem alignment, and global market relevance. Over two days, the summit featured more than 50 sessions that explored next-generation themes such as blockchain market trends, innovative governance for virtual assets, the convergence of AI and blockchain, the evolution of DeFi and banking disruption, the tokenization of real-world assets, and the frontier of NFTs and the Metaverse.

Attendees included key decision-makers from governments, blockchain networks, crypto exchanges, venture funds, and DAOs, along with founders, CTOs, developers, and asset managers. Mohammed Saleem, Founder & Chairman of Trescon, the organizers of HODL, stated, “HODL 2025 in Dubai brought together a powerful mix of visionaries shaping the future of digital finance. As we head to Riyadh, we aim to build on this momentum and further accelerate Web3 and blockchain innovation across the region.”

During the Crypto Rulebook: Global Best Practices & Regulatory Measures panel discussion, Dyma Budorin expressed the need for an ecosystem that supports entrepreneurs. Samir Safar-Aly emphasized the importance of regulations catching up and working together. Joseph Ziolkowski, during the Insuring the Future of Crypto session, highlighted that insurance has been a bedrock component of sustainability, noting it is a $6 trillion market.

HODL 2025 also hosted high-level networking sessions and investor roundtables, providing a fertile ground for deal-making and strategic partnerships. The event was supported by a strong lineup of sponsors, including Liquid Loans.io as the Platinum Sponsor, Coinvoyage as the After Party Sponsor, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Gofaizen & Sherle as Gold Sponsors, Facephi as the Silver Sponsor, and Skygate Network, FMCPay, Pays Solutions, and PEP as Bronze Sponsors.

Building on the momentum of its Dubai edition, HODL announced its 31st global edition in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, set to take place in December 2025. As Saudi Arabia rapidly emerges as a global tech and finance hub, driven by bold initiatives under Vision 2030, the country is making significant strides in the digital asset and blockchain space. With regulatory clarity evolving and institutional interest accelerating, Riyadh presents a strategic next stop for the HODL platform.

HODL Riyadh will serve as the most important gathering of Web3 leaders, investors, policy-makers, and innovators in the Kingdom, connecting the region’s ambitions with global blockchain ecosystems. The upcoming edition is expected to focus on regulatory frameworks supporting virtual assets and tokenization, institutional DeFi and digital asset adoption, public-private collaboration on blockchain infrastructure, and Web3 innovation in financial services, real estate, and logistics.

With a rapidly growing crypto user base, sovereign investment interest in digital innovation, and a rising number of blockchain startups, Saudi Arabia is poised to become a key player in the future of decentralized finance. HODL Riyadh will provide a platform to accelerate this trajectory. HODL, born from the legacy of the iconic World Blockchain Summit and organized by Trescon, is the world’s longest-running blockchain event series with 29 global editions across cities like Dubai, Singapore, and Bangkok. Since 2017, HODL has served as a platform for blockchain deal-making, innovation, and connecting disruptive projects with investors, enterprises, and governments.