* UAE crypto firms resilient amid US-Israeli conflict

with Iran

* Blockchain's virtual-first structure aids business

continuity

* Some events cancelled or postponed, banks close

branches

By Lawrence Delevingne and Federico Maccioni

DUBAI, March 18 (Reuters) - Laia Fernández has been

working as normal as a crypto marketing executive from her

high-rise apartment in Dubai's gleaming downtown business

district, even as occasional sounds of projectile interceptions

act as reminders of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.

While the conflict has thrown global energy markets and

transport into chaos across the Middle East, the blockchain

industry's virtual-first structure and culture appear to have

kept it resilient as the war enters its third week.

"Daily life hasn't dramatically changed," Fernández said of

the United Arab Emirates, which has emerged as a crypto hub in

recent years, with the government investing in and promoting the

industry.

Fernández said her clients, like other crypto companies

based in the UAE, operate globally with cloud-based

infrastructure and trading on virtual marketplaces, meaning

little disruption even with many of their employees working from

home or temporarily travelling abroad.

Despite multiple attacks on Dubai, including on its airport

on Monday, which have dented the emirate's status as a regional

safe haven for tourism and business, the flow of crypto, it

turns out, has so far been easier to maintain than oil or gas.

Alex Scott, a crypto executive who promotes the Solana

blockchain in Dubai, is optimistic for the longer term in part

because the conflict has accelerated conversations about

financial infrastructure resilience.

"The fundamentals that made the UAE attractive for crypto

and blockchain haven't changed," Scott told Reuters.

Bitcoin has edged higher since the U.S. and Israeli strikes

began on February 28, hitting $73,949 on Tuesday, but is still

down around 15% for the year.

Thomas Puech, CEO of crypto trading firm INDIGO, said there

were no signs of flows linked to an exodus from the UAE.

GLOBAL HUB

The UAE's embrace of crypto includes dirham-backed

stablecoins approved by the central bank, blockchain trading

services provided by some local lenders and on-chain payments

accepted or announced for real estate projects, including a

Trump Tower under construction in Dubai.

Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi-backed investor MGX last year purchased

a $2 billion stake in Binance, while another government-linked

entity spent $500 million for partial ownership of World Liberty

Financial, a crypto company co-founded by U.S. President Donald

Trump, his sons and other business partners.

A World Liberty spokesman previously told Reuters that the

President had no involvement in the deal and rejected any notion

of governmental favour-trading.

Karl Naim, an Abu Dhabi-based executive for crypto

investment firm XBTO, told Reuters that the biggest immediate

impact on the UAE was a rise in caution, with practical issues

around travel disruption, delayed meetings, and a general shift

toward contingency planning.

His team, already used to hybrid home-office work, is

working remotely instead of at their office in ADGM, Abu Dhabi's

financial centre, which is near a targeted military port.

"We are not worried about our wellbeing, but worried about

the situation not stabilizing anytime soon," Naim said.

Some regional events have been cancelled or postponed,

including TOKEN2049, a major crypto conference in Dubai, and the

security situation in the region remains fluid.

Citigroup ( C ) said on Monday it was keeping most branches and

offices in the UAE closed until further notice. The U.S. bank,

Britain's Standard Chartered ( SCBFF ) and the London Stock Exchange Group ( LDNXF )

have previously told employees in ⁠Dubai to work remotely.

'ON HOLD'

Gordon Einstein, founder of CryptoLaw Partners, said that

UAE regulatory functions were running smoothly and Dubai was

still the best choice over Europe and Asia in terms of

regulation, taking into account access to local capital.

Einstein said a large cohort of UAE investors and

entrepreneurs, many transient expats, had left temporarily but

could still run their businesses abroad. Whether or not they

return, and how strong the UAE's crypto scene stays, depends on

how long the conflict lasts, he added.

"Dubai lives off the idea that people want to come here,"

Einstein, a resident of the city, told Reuters.

"That's on hold right now," he added.