Hoot Professionals
Ghassan Makki
Founder & Managing Partner - Financial Markets & Digital Assets
About Ghassan
Ghassan Makki leads the firm's push into next-generation finance, marrying deep courtroom experience with front-line blockchain know-how. Over 15 years he has steered multinational corporates, DIFC fintechs and family offices through the full digital-asset life-cycle—licensing under VARA, SCA and ADGM rulebooks; designing tokenisation structures for real estate, gold and private equity; and building stable-coin settlement rails with UAE clearing banks.
Recently he masterminded a US $240m tokenised-property platform in South Dubai, structured a cross-border DAO governance stack for a GCC family office, and secured dual VARA/ADGM authorisations for a crypto-native neobank rolling out BIN-sponsored debit cards. Ghassan also advises on CBDC integration, MiCAR equivalency, on-chain KYC, and AI-driven compliance tooling—drawing on thousands of data-points from his proprietary litigation-forecasting model that has underpinned AED 1.3 bn in client matters since 2021.
A graduate of Al Neelain University (LL.B., 2009), he is a Registered Legal Consultant in Dubai and a regular commentator on Gulf Business, Bloomberg Arabia and Dubai Future Blockchain Summit panels. Ghassan blends Sudanese resilience with Dubai dynamism to help clients capitalise on Web3 without losing sight of risk or reputation.
Areas of Expertise
Digital Asset Lifecycle
Guiding clients through licensing (VARA, SCA, ADGM), tokenization design (real estate, gold, PE), and stablecoin settlement.
Blockchain & Web3 Strategy
Advising on CBDC integration, MiCAR equivalency, on-chain KYC, DAO governance, and AI-driven compliance tooling.
Next-Gen Finance Structures
Designing innovative financial solutions combining legal expertise with cutting-edge blockchain technology.
Litigation & Risk Forecasting
Leveraging deep courtroom experience and proprietary data models (AED 1.3bn+ matters) for strategic advantage.
Career & Education
Founder & Managing Partner
Hoot Innovation Law Hub (Current)
Leading the firm's next-generation finance practice, advising corporates, fintechs, and family offices on digital assets.
Legal Practice (15+ Years Experience)
Pre-Hoot / Various Roles
Gained deep courtroom and transactional experience steering multinational corporates, DIFC fintechs, and family offices.
Registered Legal Consultant
Dubai, UAE
Authorized legal consultant; commentator on Gulf Business, Bloomberg Arabia, and Dubai Future Blockchain Summit.
LL.B. (Hons.)
Al Neelain University
Graduated 2009Notable Mandates & Achievements
- Masterminded a US $240m tokenised-property platform in South Dubai.
- Structured a cross-border DAO governance stack for a GCC family office.
- Secured dual VARA/ADGM authorisations for a crypto-native neobank launching BIN-sponsored debit cards.
- Developed proprietary litigation-forecasting model underpinning AED 1.3 bn in client matters since 2021.
- Built stable-coin settlement rails with UAE clearing banks.