The Indian rupee will be accepted at the duty-free shops at airports in Dubai, benefitting hundreds of Indian travellers and expats, reported Malayalam daily Mathrubhumi on Wednesday. Earlier, the rupee had to be converted into dollar, dirham or euro.

According to the report, the currency will be accepted at three terminals of the Dubai International Airport and Al Maktoum Airport.

The decision, the report said, makes the rupee the 17th currency accepted for transactions at Dubai Duty-Free.

UAE is home to the largest Indian diaspora in the globe. Besides, the airports host a large number of travellers hailing from the country.

Founded in 1983, Dubai Duty-Free has grown into one of the biggest travel retail operator in the world. The shops work for 24 hours and have 6100 employees from 47 different countries, the report mentioned.

As of 2018, Dubai Duty-Free had sales worth Rs 13,800 crore ($ 2.015 billion), it added.

First Published:Jul 3, 2019 11:21 AM IST