DUBAI – Dubai’s international financial center DIFC said on Thursday the number of new company registrations at the hub rose by nearly 40% last year to 1,525, driven by an influx of companies such as hedge funds.
As Gulf countries diversify their economies away from oil and invest billions of dollars in areas such as financial services, the number of companies they are attracting to hubs like the DIFC is increasing.
According to the presentation, the total number of companies actively registered with the center was approximately 8,840 as of the end of December last year, an increase of 28% from 2024.
These include 557 asset management companies, which have set up or expanded bases in Dubai and neighboring Abu Dhabi in recent years as the UAE attracts high-net-worth individuals, attracted by factors such as the relative ease of doing business and tax-free status.
DIFC President Essa Kazim told the media of the geographical breakdown of the centre’s companies: “We have seen a slight increase in the UK, which probably reflects the growth of hedge funds brought in from the country.”
DIFC is set for an expansion of about $27 billion by 2040, authorities announced last week, as the hub reaches capacity and aims to accommodate new companies.
Asked about financing the project, Kazim said DIFC achieved a net profit of about $400 million last year, which is “truly future cash flow” that will contribute to expansion, along with internal resources and potential returns to the capital markets.
“The market is definitely open. We have issued sukuk in the past and that is one possibility.”
(Reporting by Federico Maccioni; Editing by William Maclean)
