The Fintech Frontier: How Dubai and Abu Dhabi is Stealing the UK’s Investment Crown
Money is on the move. Entering 2026, the global fintech map looks markedly different from where it stood a decade ago. The US remains the dominant investment market, but the more significant story is the emergence of a highly competitive, dual-hemisphere rivalry between established centres such as London and rapidly institutionalising hubs in the Gulf.
Dubai and Abu Dhabi have gone from bold outsiders to globally relevant financial centres. Investors are allocating capital at greater scale, startups are building regional and cross-border platforms, and regulators are moving from experimentation toward deeper institutional frameworks. What was once described as the future of Middle East finance has become an established part of the global fintech landscape.
The headline “UAE overtakes UK fintech investment” accurately described the first half of 2025, when the UAE temporarily moved into second place globally. But the finalized full-year data tells a more balanced story. According to Innovate Finance, the UK secured $3.6 billion in fintech investment across 534 deals in 2025, retaining second place globally, while the UAE attracted a record $2.5 billion and finished fourth, behind the US, UK and India.
Rather than a simple transfer of the investment crown from London to the Emirates, 2025 established something more durable: the UAE has become a serious peer-level challenger within the global fintech hierarchy. London retains greater funding breadth and deal volume, while Dubai and Abu Dhabi are building comparable institutional relevance in digital assets, financial innovation and cross-border capital. The next question is therefore not whether one market has permanently displaced the other, but how their competing ecosystems are attracting and concentrating global fintech capital entering 2026.
Global Fintech Investment Trends in 2025
UAE fintech investment 2025 ended the year as part of a broader global recovery rather than a temporary H1 spike. Finalized full-year data shows that fintech capital returned to growth, although investors became markedly more selective about where that money was deployed. The US remained the dominant market, while the UK, India, the UAE and Singapore formed the rest of the global top five under Innovate Finance’s country-ranking dataset.
Two widely cited datasets describe that recovery from different angles. Innovate Finance reported $53 billion of global fintech funding across 5,918 deals in 2025, up 21% from 2024. KPMG’s broader Pulse of Fintech dataset, which includes venture capital, private equity and M&A activity, recorded $116 billion across 4,719 deals, up from $95.5 billion in 2024. These totals are therefore not directly interchangeable: Innovate Finance is more useful for comparing country funding rankings, while KPMG provides a broader picture of corporate transactions, buyouts and consolidation.
KPMG’s regional figures reinforce how concentrated capital remained. The Americas attracted $66.5 billion across 2,409 deals in 2025, with the US alone accounting for $56.6 billion. EMEA secured $29.2 billion across 1,484 deals, while Asia-Pacific slowed to $9.3 billion across 763 deals. KPMG simultaneously reported global deal volume falling to its lowest annual level since 2017, even as total investment increased.
That combination—more capital but fewer transactions—is the clearest evidence of the “flight to quality” that defined late 2025 and continues into 2026. Investors increasingly concentrated capital in larger, scaling companies with proven fundamentals rather than distributing it widely across higher-risk early-stage businesses. KPMG specifically identified this pattern in Europe, while its global payments analysis also showed capital being concentrated in established scaling companies.
Global Fintech Investment Comparison: Full-Year 2025
| Market | Innovate Finance 2025 funding | Global rank |
| United States | $25.1 billion | 1 |
| United Kingdom | $3.6 billion | 2 |
| India | $3.4 billion | 3 |
| UAE | $2.5 billion | 4 |
| Singapore | $2.0 billion | 5 |
The fintech investment comparison UAE vs UK therefore looks very different on finalized full-year data than it did at mid-year. The UAE did move ahead of the UK during H1 2025, but the UK ultimately finished second globally with $3.6 billion, while the UAE closed the year fourth with a record $2.5 billion. Singapore followed at $2.0 billion.
The more meaningful 2026 takeaway is capital concentration rather than a simple ranking contest. Innovate Finance reported that the top ten markets still captured 82% of global fintech funding in 2025. The UAE’s fourth-place finish therefore puts it inside a relatively concentrated group of global capital destinations rather than merely identifying it as an emerging regional market.
That institutional positioning is being reinforced by public policy. Dubai’s Financial Sector Strategy includes 15 transformative programmes spanning FinTech, virtual assets, SME financing, capital markets and asset management, while the UAE Ministry of Economy’s Investopia investment agenda places financial services, digital transformation and advanced technology among the country’s strategic new-economy investment priorities.
For founders, that matters alongside practical market-entry considerations such as offshore vs onshore corporate accounts and navigating Abu Dhabi mainland company setup. Capital is increasingly selective, so regulatory credibility, banking readiness and the ability to scale within a recognised financial jurisdiction now matter as much as headline market growth.
So what’s powering this shift? Tech and regulation. The UAE has continued to expand frameworks around digital assets, payments, financial infrastructure and AI while simultaneously deepening the institutional base around DIFC and ADGM. This is strengthening the UAE fintech regulatory environment at precisely the point when global investors are demonstrating a stronger preference for mature, well-governed platforms.
On top of that, billion-dollar deals, a buzzing Dubai fintech ecosystem, and the rise of the Abu Dhabi fintech hub keep drawing fresh money in. The finalized 2025 numbers give a more credible foundation for discussing Dubai fintech investment growth, Abu Dhabi fintech funding 2025 and UAE fintech market size 2025: the UAE did not permanently displace London, but it did establish itself among the five largest fintech funding markets globally.
Dubai and Abu Dhabi’s Fintech Ecosystem: A New Powerhouse
Dubai and Abu Dhabi are now the ones drawing in startups, investors, and global heavyweights. The UAE has planted itself firmly on the financial map. What changed in 2025 was the scale: the record-breaking expansion of DIFC and ADGM moved both centres beyond the profile of emerging regional hubs and deeper into the institutional architecture of global finance.
Key fintech sectors fueling the rise
The growth story is broad and fast. Digital payments in Dubai are scaling with a young, mobile-first population. Neobanks are taking off. Abu Dhabi is attracting global names in digital assets and AI. Wealthtech is gaining traction alongside them. The UAE fintech market size 2025 story is increasingly supported by the institutions around those subsectors. According to Dubai Government’s finalized DIFC 2025 results, DIFC reached 8,844 active registered companies in 2025, representing 28% year-on-year growth. Its AI and FinTech community expanded by 35% to 1,677 organisations, including 200 companies in the Dubai AI Campus, while startups supported through the DIFC Innovation Hub and Dubai AI Campus ecosystem had collectively raised more than $4.5 billion regionally.
DIFC’s workforce also grew to 50,200 financial-services professionals after creating 4,122 new jobs during 2025. That combination of firms, capital and specialist talent gives the Dubai fintech ecosystem greater institutional depth than startup counts alone suggest.
The role of major fintech events
Nothing fuels an ecosystem like visibility. The Dubai FinTech Summit and Abu Dhabi Finance Week have become deal-making stages. Investors fly in, startups pitch, and regulators set the tone for what’s next.
But by 2026 these events sit on top of much larger permanent ecosystems. Dubai FinTech Summit supports a DIFC platform now operating at global scale, while Abu Dhabi Finance Week increasingly convenes asset managers, banks, sovereign investors, digital-asset businesses and institutional capital already operating through ADGM. Tracking Dubai fintech investment growth or Abu Dhabi fintech funding 2025 is therefore no longer only about event-driven deal announcements; it is also about the expanding operating base behind those events.
Government support and policy frameworks
The UAE’s rise isn’t an accident. Regulators, CBUAE, DFSA, FSRA, and VARA — have all taken a proactive stance. Open banking, digital assets, and AI in finance each have their own clear framework. The important development entering 2026 is that the UAE fintech regulatory environment is being reinforced by institutional scale. DIFC combines the DFSA-regulated financial system with a growing AI and FinTech cluster, while ADGM combines its independent legal jurisdiction with FSRA oversight, asset management, banking and digital-asset frameworks. Regulatory credibility is therefore being supported by increasingly deep pools of firms, employees, funds and professional-services infrastructure.
Strategic free zones powering growth
Then there are the free zones. DIFC in Dubai and ADGM in Abu Dhabi aren’t just office parks, they are global gateways. With their own courts, tax benefits, and streamlined company setups, they give fintechs the credibility and flexibility they need to grow.
ADGM’s finalized 2025 figures are particularly significant. Active licences increased by 30% to 12,671, Assets Under Management rose by 36%, and the workforce expanded by 51% from 29,338 to 44,339 professionals. The centre also ended 2025 with 171 asset and fund managers overseeing 244 funds, illustrating that the Abu Dhabi fintech hub is developing alongside a much broader institutional asset-management ecosystem.
For companies that do not require the full regulatory infrastructure of DIFC or ADGM, alternative structures such as streamlined RAKEZ free zone structures may provide a different cost and operational profile. Fintech businesses targeting Abu Dhabi’s domestic market may also need to assess free-zone establishment alongside navigating Abu Dhabi mainland company setup, depending on the activities, customer base and regulatory permissions involved.
Institutional Depth: Comparing the Scale of DIFC and ADGM
DIFC and ADGM are increasingly differentiated by institutional strengths rather than simply by geography. DIFC closed 2025 with 8,844 active companies, 1,677 AI and FinTech organisations and 50,200 professionals, giving Dubai a particularly dense concentration of regulated financial institutions, technology firms, asset managers and professional services.
ADGM, meanwhile, entered 2026 with greater momentum in licences, asset management and international institutional expansion. Its official Q1 2026 results showed AUM rising 57% year-on-year, active licences reaching 13,353 and the workforce increasing further to 47,047. The number of financial-services firms reached 365, while the population of asset and fund managers increased to 179.
The two centres therefore represent different but complementary forms of scale: DIFC offers one of the region’s deepest concentrations of FinTech, AI and diversified financial-services firms, while ADGM is expanding particularly rapidly in asset management, institutional capital and regulated financial activity. Together, their 2025 and early-2026 performance gives the UAE a financial-centre architecture capable of competing for firms and capital that previously defaulted to London, Singapore or other established hubs.
Bottom line: Dubai and Abu Dhabi didn’t just join the fintech race, they built their own track. By 2026, that track is supported by measurable institutional depth: thousands of active companies and licences, nearly 100,000 professionals across the two centres, expanding pools of managed assets, and one of the region’s largest concentrations of FinTech and digital-finance businesses.
UAE's Unique Regulatory Advantage Over the UK
The fintech landscape is becoming more institutionally complex, and the UAE’s competitive advantage increasingly comes from regulatory architecture rather than regulatory speed alone. Entering 2026, firms can choose between the federal/onshore framework and specialised financial free-zone regimes, while Dubai has developed an additional dedicated regulatory layer for virtual assets. This gives fintech businesses several clearly defined routes depending on their activities, customers and target markets.
Dual regulatory structure: Onshore vs free zone regulation
The UAE gives fintechs something rare: choice. At federal level, regulated banking, payment and related financial activities principally fall within the Central Bank framework. DIFC operates as an independent financial jurisdiction regulated by the DFSA, while ADGM operates under its own financial-services framework through the FSRA. Dubai’s virtual-asset sector has an additional specialist regulator, VARA, whose jurisdiction covers the Emirate of Dubai, including its free zones, but expressly excludes DIFC.
This differs from the UK’s more nationally centralised regulatory architecture around the FCA and PRA. That does not automatically make one model superior, but the UAE structure gives founders greater jurisdictional choice when deciding whether they need access to the domestic market, an international financial centre, or a specialised virtual-asset regime.
Adoption of international best practices with local innovation
DIFC and ADGM are built on common-law-based legal and regulatory frameworks designed for international financial businesses. Their appeal is not simply lighter regulation; it is the ability to combine globally familiar legal concepts with frameworks adapted to regional capital flows, Islamic finance, digital assets and cross-border investment.
That institutional flexibility has become one of the defining characteristics of the UAE fintech regulatory environment. Rather than applying an identical framework to every financial business, regulatory obligations differ according to the activity, jurisdiction and risk profile of the firm.
Regulatory sandbox and crypto/digital asset oversight
Testing new ideas is part of the system here. DIFC and ADGM sandboxes let startups develop and test innovative financial products within supervised regulatory environments.
For virtual assets specifically, VARA has transitioned from basic licensing to a substantially more structured compliance, market-conduct and enforcement regime in 2026. The current framework goes beyond determining whether a crypto business needs a licence: licensed VASPs face detailed requirements covering governance, AML/CFT, market surveillance, client suitability, technology, transfers, derivatives and ongoing regulatory reporting.
The comparison with Britain also needs updating. It is no longer accurate to describe UK crypto regulation simply as “messy and uncertain.” The UK is progressing toward a more comprehensive national cryptoasset framework, while Dubai already operates a dedicated activity-based virtual-asset regime through VARA. The distinction entering 2026 is therefore increasingly about regulatory architecture and implementation timelines rather than regulation versus no regulation.
VARA’s 2026 Compliance Mandate: Risk Assessments and Derivatives Integration
Three developments in 2026 demonstrate how VARA’s regime has moved from market formation into deeper supervision and operational compliance.
First, VARA published AML/CFT Business Risk Assessment Guidance on 12 June 2026 following its 2026 thematic review of licensed VASPs. The guidance makes clear that a Business Risk Assessment should function as a live risk-management tool rather than a static compliance document. Licensed VASPs must review their BRA at intervals of no more than three months and demonstrate that the conclusions feed directly into AML/CFT policies, systems, controls and resource allocation.
Crucially, VARA expects risk scoring to be grounded in actual operational evidence. Relevant inputs include customer-risk distributions, transaction-monitoring alerts, STR/SAR data, sanctions-screening outcomes, transaction volumes, geographical exposure, audit findings and enhanced-due-diligence statistics. The guidance specifically identifies unhosted wallets, cross-border transfers, stablecoins, DeFi structures, privacy-enhancing activity and emerging AI-enabled fraud typologies as virtual-asset-specific risks that should be assessed.
Second, VARA’s updated Exchange Services Rulebook became effective on 31 March 2026 and introduced a formal framework for Exchange-Traded Derivative Services. Exchange VASPs may offer ETD Services only where VARA has explicitly authorised the activity and that authorisation is stated in their licence.
The framework covers products including futures, options, contracts for difference and perpetual ETDs. It imposes requirements around client suitability, segregation of ETD activities, margin and leverage, disclosures, insurance funds, monitoring, close-out procedures and regulatory reporting. This is a significant institutional development because Dubai’s digital-asset framework is expanding beyond spot crypto activity into regulated derivatives infrastructure.
Third, VARA issued its UAE Virtual Assets Travel Rule requirements circular on 24 February 2026. The rules require qualifying virtual-asset transfers to carry prescribed originator and beneficiary information, with VASPs responsible for collecting, verifying, securely transmitting, monitoring and retaining the relevant data.
The Travel Rule also creates specific controls for higher-risk transactions. Transfers involving unhosted wallets require enhanced due diligence, including additional customer-identification and source-of-funds verification. Where the required information is unavailable or the risk cannot be adequately mitigated, the VASP may need to decline, delay or return the transfer. VARA states that implementation may be tested through supervisory engagements, inspections and thematic reviews, with non-compliance potentially leading to enforcement action.
Consumer protection, AML, and fintech-friendly regulations
Speed doesn’t mean cutting corners. The direction of travel in 2026 is toward more intensive risk governance rather than lighter supervision. VARA’s quarterly BRA expectations, enhanced Travel Rule controls and formal derivatives regime illustrate a regulatory model attempting to accommodate institutional digital-asset activity while imposing increasingly detailed AML/CFT, suitability, market-integrity and governance controls.
This is increasingly important for UAE fintech investment 2025 as capital shifts toward regulated, institutionally credible platforms. The investment case for Dubai is therefore not simply that obtaining a licence is easier; it is that firms can operate within specialised regulatory frameworks whose obligations are becoming clearer and more sophisticated as the market matures.
The UAE has not simply “overtaken” the UK across every regulatory dimension. A more defensible 2026 conclusion is that the Emirates have created a differentiated regulatory architecture that competes directly with London: the UK retains a deep, nationally integrated financial regulatory system, while the UAE offers multiple specialised jurisdictions and an increasingly mature dedicated framework for virtual assets.
Breaking Down the Investment Surge: Key Drivers
UAE fintech investment 2025 reached $2.2 billion during the first half of the year, temporarily moving the UAE ahead of the UK in the global rankings. Finalized full-year data provides the more durable picture: the UAE ultimately attracted a record $2.5 billion in fintech funding and finished fourth globally, behind the US, UK and India. The H1 surge was therefore significant, but it should be understood as part of the UAE’s broader emergence as a top-five global fintech funding market rather than a permanent displacement of London.
The landmark $2 billion investment by Abu Dhabi’s AI-focused investor MGX into Binance in March 2025 was the transaction that transformed Abu Dhabi fintech funding 2025. According to the Abu Dhabi Media Office, MGX acquired a minority stake in Binance in what was the crypto exchange’s first institutional investment, the largest single investment into a crypto company at the time, and the largest investment announced as being paid in a stablecoin.
The mechanism became even more strategically significant two months later. On 1 May 2025, World Liberty Financial disclosed that its US dollar-pegged USD1 stablecoin had been selected to close MGX’s $2 billion Binance transaction. The March announcement had not identified which stablecoin would be used. The deal therefore connected Abu Dhabi institutional capital, one of the world’s largest crypto exchanges and a US dollar-backed digital asset associated with World Liberty Financial in a single cross-border transaction.
That structure also illustrates a wider geopolitical trend. Abu Dhabi is increasingly deploying strategic technology capital internationally across AI, digital infrastructure and blockchain, while dollar-backed stablecoins are becoming part of the infrastructure connecting traditional capital with digital-asset markets. The Binance transaction should therefore be viewed not simply as a large venture investment, but as an example of how UAE-based institutional capital is intersecting with the evolving US digital-asset ecosystem and the broader international competition over AI, blockchain and financial infrastructure.
But it’s not just mega-deals. Fintech startup funding UAE continues to develop across payments, neobanking, wealthtech, digital assets and financial infrastructure. However, the 2025 investment data also shows increasing capital concentration, meaning founders are competing for more selective institutional funding rather than benefiting from indiscriminate venture growth. Investors evaluating Dubai fintech investment growth are increasingly looking for regulated businesses with scalable models, defensible technology and access to regional markets.
The market forecasts also need to be updated. Mordor Intelligence estimates the UAE fintech market size at $52.07 billion in 2026, rising from $46.67 billion in 2025, and projects it to reach $90.06 billion by 2031. That represents an estimated compound annual growth rate of 11.58% between 2026 and 2031.
This figure should not, however, be compared directly with the $2.5 billion investment total reported by Innovate Finance. The $52.07 billion estimate is a broad commercial market-size measure covering fintech service activity across areas such as digital payments, lending, investments, insurtech and neobanking, whereas Innovate Finance measures capital invested into fintech companies. They answer different questions.
And that’s the stronger 2026 takeaway. Between strategic institutional investments, growing fintech startup funding UAE, increasingly sophisticated digital-asset infrastructure and an expanding underlying market, the Dubai fintech ecosystem and Abu Dhabi fintech hub are no longer dependent on a single headline transaction. The MGX-Binance deal accelerated the UAE’s visibility, but the longer-term investment case rests on whether Dubai and Abu Dhabi can convert that capital, regulation and market growth into a deeper pipeline of scalable fintech businesses.
What the UK is Facing: Challenges and Competitive Pressures
The UK’s position is better understood in 2026 as a period of consolidation and regulatory modernization designed to restore London’s competitiveness, rather than a simple decline in favour of the UAE. Finalized 2025 fintech funding data shows that the UK ultimately retained second place globally, while policymakers and regulators have since accelerated reforms across payments, private-market liquidity and institutional capital allocation.
Regulatory hurdles and calls for reform in the UK fintech sector
The UK still carries weight as a fintech hub, but its challenge has been regulatory complexity and the need to modernise infrastructure developed around a much older financial system. The contrast with the UAE fintech regulatory environment is therefore less about one market being “regulated” and the other not, and more about how quickly each jurisdiction can adapt its existing architecture to digital finance.
Britain’s 2026 policy response shows that this gap is being actively addressed. HM Treasury, the FCA and the Bank of England are working across payments, stablecoins, Open Banking, private securities and digital assets to simplify the regulatory pipeline and create more predictable routes to market.
Market saturation and slower growth rates compared to UAE
Rather than describing the UK as simply experiencing slower growth rates compared to UAE, the 2026 evidence points to a period of consolidation and regulatory modernization designed to restore London’s competitiveness. The finalized 2025 figures are important: the UK recovered to $3.6 billion of fintech funding and finished second globally, while UAE fintech investment 2025 reached a record $2.5 billion and placed the Emirates fourth.
The more useful comparison is therefore market maturity versus expansion. London retains a broader established fintech base and deeper deal pipeline, while Dubai fintech investment growth and Abu Dhabi fintech funding 2025 reflect a younger market attracting increasingly large institutional and sovereign-linked investments.
Comparisons of governmental support and ecosystem readiness
Government support is another area where the two markets increasingly use different tools rather than displaying a simple support gap. The UAE has built fintech into national economic strategy through DIFC, ADGM, digital-asset regulation and major investment platforms. The UK, meanwhile, is attempting to mobilise pension capital, modernise market infrastructure and simplify financial regulation to channel more domestic capital toward growth companies.
This means the Dubai fintech ecosystem and Abu Dhabi fintech hub retain an advantage in institutional momentum, while London is actively redesigning parts of its financial infrastructure rather than relying solely on its historic market position.
Impact of Brexit and global market shifts
Brexit has reshaped the UK’s financial standing. The loss of EU passporting rights has limited London’s appeal as a European launchpad, while the UAE has doubled down on attracting international firms.
However, the earlier statement that the UAE permanently overtook the UK in global fintech fundraising should be removed. The UAE briefly moved ahead during H1 2025, but full-year data restored the UK to second place. A rising UAE fintech market size 2025 therefore represents diversification of global fintech capital rather than the wholesale displacement of London.
The Payments Forward Plan: Modernizing London’s Retail Infrastructure
On 26 February 2026, HM Treasury published the Payments Forward Plan, setting out a coordinated three-year roadmap under the National Payments Vision. The plan directly addresses one of the UK sector’s longstanding complaints: overlapping initiatives and regulatory congestion.
A central element is the planned consolidation of the Payment Systems Regulator into the FCA. This is intended to simplify the regulatory landscape, although implementation still requires primary legislation and should not be described as completed in 2026.
The plan also targets the underlying payments infrastructure. During 2026, the authorities are developing the next generation of retail payments infrastructure while making shorter-term improvements to Faster Payments and Bacs. By the end of 2026, planned enhancements include data and operational improvements intended to strengthen resilience and support greater innovation in account-to-account payments.
The wider programme also covers stablecoins, Open Banking, tokenised payments, agentic AI, digital wallets and potentially near-24/7 wholesale settlement. London’s response to competitive pressure is therefore increasingly infrastructure-led rather than defensive.
The PISCES Marketplace: Secondary Market Liquidity for Private Tech
Another major reform is the Private Intermittent Securities and Capital Exchange System, or PISCES. The FCA published its final sandbox rules and launched the framework on 10 June 2025, creating a new regulated mechanism through which investors can periodically trade shares in private companies without requiring those businesses to undertake a full public listing.
The significance became tangible in March 2026. JP Jenkins completed the first PISCES liquidity event involving QPLAY Ltd on 24 March 2026. One day later, on 25 March, the London Stock Exchange completed the first transaction on its Private Securities Market under the PISCES framework, using a Tradable Private Equity structure with Oxford Science Enterprises as the underlying asset.
These transactions matter because one of London’s competitive weaknesses has been the gap between private venture funding and public-market liquidity. PISCES gives high-growth private companies, employees and investors a regulated secondary-market mechanism while allowing the company itself to remain private. The FCA explicitly positions the framework as part of its strategy to support investment, innovation and the competitiveness of UK capital markets.
Capital Mobilization: The Real-World Status of the Mansion House Accord
The UK is also attempting to solve a different structural problem: insufficient domestic institutional capital flowing into private growth assets. Under the Mansion House Accord, announced on 13 May 2025, 17 major workplace pension providers committed to an ambition of allocating at least 10% of their main defined-contribution default funds to private markets by 2030, with at least 5% of total assets directed toward UK private markets.
The government estimated that the Accord could ultimately unlock roughly £50 billion of additional private-market investment, including more than £25 billion in the UK. However, the commitment is voluntary, subject to fiduciary duties and dependent on a sufficiently attractive pipeline of investible assets. It should therefore not be treated as £50 billion of capital that has already entered UK fintech or venture funds.
The 2026 picture remains transitional. Current government analysis indicates that defined-contribution schemes still hold only around 4% of their assets in UK and overseas private markets, compared with the approximately 10% level targeted through the reform programme. The government itself acknowledges that system-wide change will take time because schemes need to develop internal investment capability and suitable investment opportunities must also be available.
That is particularly relevant for venture capital. The policy direction is favourable, but the transmission mechanism from pension commitments to actual VC and fintech deployment is gradual. The Pensions Regulator has separately been examining barriers including available investment vehicles, liquidity considerations and the practical limitations faced by schemes allocating to private markets.
Bottom line: London isn’t out of the game, and the 2026 evidence does not support a simple narrative of capital permanently moving east. The UK is responding through payments infrastructure reform, new private-market liquidity mechanisms and pension-capital mobilisation. The UAE retains advantages in regulatory specialisation, sovereign-linked capital and rapid institutional expansion, while London is using its existing depth to modernise. The result is a much closer competitive contest between two increasingly different models of fintech growth.
What This Means for Investors and Startups
Sitting at the crossroads of the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, the Emirates offers access to growth corridors where fintech adoption is moving faster than in Europe. Reports like the Invest UAE FDI Report 2025 highlight how this positioning is pulling in global capital that once flowed to London.
Benefits of establishing fintech ventures in UAE free zones
DIFC and ADGM are no longer just regional financial centers; they’ve become credibility badges. For fintech founders, however, the advantage is not simply “tax breaks.” DIFC and ADGM provide separate common-law-based financial jurisdictions, specialist regulators and internationally recognised licensing frameworks. The actual Corporate Tax treatment depends on whether the entity satisfies the UAE’s Qualifying Free Zone Person requirements and on the nature of its income.
For digital-asset businesses, Dubai adds another specialised route through VARA. Unlike the UK’s forthcoming regime, Dubai’s virtual-asset framework is already operational and has continued to deepen during 2026 through Travel Rule requirements, enhanced AML/CFT expectations and a formal Exchange-Traded Derivatives framework. The current VARA Exchange Services Rulebook has applied since 31 March 2026 and allows ETD activity only where specifically authorised by VARA.
Add to that initiatives spotlighted at the Dubai Fintech Summit 2025, and you see why global fintechs are setting up shop in free zones first before expanding regionally.
Founders should nevertheless choose the jurisdiction around the regulated activity rather than the prestige of the address. Banking structure, customer geography and whether the company needs mainland access should be assessed alongside issues such as offshore vs onshore corporate accounts.
Opportunities in emerging fintech sub-sectors
The UAE isn’t only chasing payments and neobanks. Watch where the regulators and capital are leaning: green finance tied to sustainability goals, embedded finance baked into e-commerce and logistics platforms, and tokenization driven by blockchain infrastructure in Abu Dhabi.
The opportunity set is becoming broader in 2026. Regulated virtual-asset derivatives, Open Finance, stablecoin infrastructure, tokenised assets and AI-enabled wealthtech are creating business models that increasingly sit between traditional finance and digital-asset regulation. That makes regulatory perimeter analysis an important part of product design rather than something to address only after launch.
These aren’t side bets, they are growth engines, and players who get in early stand to define the market.
Risks and considerations
The upside is real, but so are the hurdles. Multi-license compliance across onshore and free zones can get messy. Regulations evolve quickly – VARA’s crypto oversight is an example of how fast things can shift. Smart money knows this isn’t a set-and-forget play; it’s about staying close to the regulators and building adaptability into your strategy from day one.
The UK comparison has also changed materially. It is no longer accurate to say that “UK crypto rules are still messy.” On 30 June 2026, the FCA completed a major package of final cryptoasset rules covering stablecoin issuance, prudential requirements, regulated cryptoasset activities, market abuse, admissions and disclosures, safeguarding, Consumer Duty and operational standards. The UK’s newly finalized, more business-friendly cryptoasset regime is therefore substantially clearer than it was when this article was first published.
The FCA also moderated several proposals following industry consultation. Under PS26/12, the stablecoin-issuance K-factor was reduced from 2% to 1%. For qualifying cryptoassets that can be prudently valued and are admitted to a UK qualifying cryptoasset trading platform, the final prudential framework applies a 40% net-risk-position requirement and a 40% counterparty-credit-default volatility adjustment, rather than relying on the more punitive structure initially proposed. Cryptoassets that fail those conditions remain subject to substantially harsher capital treatment, including deduction from regulatory capital and a 100% K-CCD volatility adjustment.
The distinction between the policy statements should remain clear: PS26/10 regulates stablecoin issuance; PS26/9 establishes the Admissions and Disclosures and Market Abuse Regime for Cryptoassets; and PS26/12 contains the final prudential framework, including the revised capital calibration.
FCA vs VARA: Regulatory Timeline for Fintech Founders
| Regulatory milestone | Dubai – VARA | United Kingdom – FCA |
| Current position in 2026 | Operational licensing and supervision regime already in force | Final comprehensive cryptoasset rules published 30 June 2026 |
| Travel Rule | Enhanced implementation requirements issued in February 2026 | Existing UK Travel Rule applies under the current AML framework |
| Crypto derivatives | Formal ETD framework effective 31 March 2026 for specifically authorised Exchange VASPs | New FSMA cryptoasset regime being prepared for implementation |
| Prudential framework | Existing VARA prudential and activity-specific requirements apply to licensed VASPs | PS26/12 finalised 30 June 2026, including 1% stablecoin K-factor and revised 40% treatment for qualifying trading-book cryptoassets |
| Authorisation gateway | VARA licensing already operational | Applications open 30 September 2026 and close 28 February 2027 |
| Full new regime | Active during 2026 | Comes into force 25 October 2027 |
For founders comparing the two markets, this timing difference is significant. VARA offers an already-operational specialised virtual-asset regime in Dubai, whereas the FCA has now finalised its framework but is providing firms with more than a year to prepare before full commencement. Firms can apply for UK authorisation from 30 September 2026, with the new regime taking effect on 25 October 2027. The FCA’s official cryptoasset regulatory roadmap confirms those milestones.
This creates different strategic trade-offs. Dubai offers regulatory immediacy and a specialist digital-asset regulator today; London offers access to a much deeper incumbent financial market under a comprehensive framework whose final rules are now known but whose full enforcement starts in 2027. Investors and startups should therefore compare licensing timelines, capital requirements, customer geography, banking access, product scope and ongoing compliance costs—not simply headline tax rates or the speed of incorporation.
If you are weighing the UK versus the UAE, the choice in 2026 is no longer “clear UAE rules versus uncertain UK rules.” It is a comparison between two increasingly sophisticated models: an already-active, specialist VARA regime in Dubai and a newly finalized FCA framework designed to bring cryptoassets into the UK’s broader financial-services architecture from October 2027.
Case Study: How ADEPTS Supports Fintech Businesses
ADEPTS as a trusted partner
Breaking into the UAE fintech ecosystem means navigating both onshore rules and free zone frameworks like DIFC and ADGM. In 2026, that process extends well beyond company incorporation. Fintech businesses increasingly need to align their legal structure, tax position, financial controls, AML/CFT systems, governance framework and operational model with the requirements of CBUAE, DFSA, FSRA or VARA before regulated commercial activity begins.
ADEPTS supports fintech businesses navigating the newly established 2026 compliance standards by helping convert an approved business model into an operationally ready structure. This can include accounting-system design, tax structuring, financial projections, governance documentation, AML/CFT readiness and supporting information required during regulatory and licensing processes.
Where a startup has obtained an In-Principle Approval or comparable preliminary regulatory milestone, the next phase is particularly important. An IPA does not itself permit regulated activity. Firms must satisfy the regulator’s outstanding conditions and receive the relevant licence or authorisation before commencing the regulated Financial Services for which approval is required. The DFSA authorisation framework expressly requires firms conducting Financial Services in or from DIFC to obtain DFSA authorisation.
Services that matter
ADEPTS covers the pain points every founder faces:
Regulatory compliance support across CBUAE, DFSA, FSRA and VARA requirements, including financial-control, AML/CFT, governance and reporting readiness.
Company formation and entity-structuring support for businesses establishing within or alongside DIFC, ADGM and other UAE jurisdictions.
Licensing support through preparation of financial information, business plans, operating models and supporting documentation required during regulatory applications, while recognising that licensing decisions remain with the relevant regulator.
Business setup advisory tailored for payments, digital assets, or wealthtech, including tax, accounting and operational considerations when regulated and non-regulated activities sit within different entities or jurisdictions.
2026 Compliance Readiness: From Approval to Active Operations
For virtual-asset businesses, the compliance burden has become materially more data-driven. VARA published its AML/CFT Business Risk Assessment Guidance on 12 June 2026 following a thematic review of licensed VASPs. The guidance expects business risk assessments to reflect the firm’s actual operations rather than functioning as generic policy documents.
For a fintech moving toward active operations, this means risk assessments should be connected to customer profiles, transaction patterns, geographic exposure, products, delivery channels and virtual-asset-specific risks. ADEPTS can support the financial and operational data architecture behind those assessments, helping management establish reconciliations, transaction records, reporting controls and documented processes that can withstand regulatory review.
DIFC firms face a similarly mature supervisory environment. The DFSA’s 2025 Annual Report, published in June 2026, emphasises enforcement and market integrity alongside innovation: the regulator progressed 17 investigative matters during 2025 and has continued thematic supervisory work in 2026 around the trading environment, conflicts of interest and market-conduct controls.
The practical lesson is that obtaining a licence is the beginning of the compliance cycle, not the end. Fintech businesses need systems capable of supporting ongoing regulatory reporting, financial statements, transaction monitoring, audit requirements, tax compliance and management oversight after commercial launch.
Proven results
The value of professional support is therefore measured by whether the regulatory business model can transition into a functioning operation. For a payments business, that may mean establishing appropriate accounting flows and safeguarding reconciliations; for a digital-asset company, it may mean connecting transaction data to AML/CFT risk assessments; and for a wealthtech business, it may include financial reporting, governance and market-conduct controls.
ADEPTS’ role is to bring the accounting, tax and operational-compliance workstreams together so that founders are not trying to retrofit them after receiving regulatory approval.
Beyond setup: global expansion
The UAE isn’t just a market, it’s a gateway to the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. For UK fintech businesses entering the UAE and UAE businesses expanding toward London—the challenge in 2026 is increasingly one of regulatory mapping rather than simple company formation. A business model permitted in one jurisdiction may require different permissions, governance arrangements, capital structures or customer protections in the other.
ADEPTS can support this UK–UAE expansion from the financial and commercial side by assessing entity structures, UAE Corporate Tax and VAT implications, transfer pricing, accounting policies, cross-border transactions, financial projections and operating-model readiness. Regulatory permissions should then be coordinated with the relevant legal and regulatory specialists where required.
This approach is particularly important for businesses operating across DIFC, ADGM, mainland UAE and the UK because regulatory authorisation, company incorporation and tax residence are separate questions and should not be treated as interchangeable.
For fintech founders, ADEPTS isn’t just an advisor. Its value lies in helping turn regulatory strategy into an operationally credible business—structured, documented, tax-compliant and capable of meeting the more demanding supervisory standards now applying in 2026.
Future Outlook: The Road Ahead for UAE Fintech
The UAE isn’t slowing down. The UAE fintech market size 2026 is estimated at $52.07 billion and is projected to reach $90.06 billion by 2031, representing an estimated 11.58% CAGR. More important than the headline forecast, however, is the financial infrastructure now being built underneath that growth. The next stage of UAE fintech development is increasingly tied to execution of the Central Bank’s Financial Infrastructure Transformation programme, the Digital Dirham, Open Finance and increasingly sophisticated use of artificial intelligence across regulated financial institutions.
At the centre of that transformation is the CBUAE’s FinTech and Digital Transformation strategy. The Central Bank’s Financial Infrastructure Transformation programme is designed to modernise the UAE’s financial-services infrastructure through interconnected initiatives covering digital payments, Open Finance, digital identity and customer onboarding, financial cloud infrastructure and central bank digital currency. Rather than fintech growth being driven only by individual startups, the underlying national payment and data architecture is itself being rebuilt.
The Digital Dirham is a particularly important component of that architecture. The CBUAE has developed the central bank digital currency as part of its broader FIT programme, and UAE legislation now expressly recognises Central Bank-issued currency in digital form as legal tender. The CBUAE has also already tested cross-border Digital Dirham settlement through the mBridge platform, demonstrating that the project extends beyond a theoretical CBDC experiment into practical payment-infrastructure development.
Open Finance is developing alongside it. The CBUAE framework is intended to allow customers, with consent, to share financial data with licensed third-party providers and initiate transactions through regulated APIs. For fintech founders, this expands the addressable market for embedded finance, payment initiation, insurance technology, financial-data products and other API-based services while increasing the importance of cybersecurity, consent management and regulatory interoperability.
Artificial intelligence is becoming the other major accelerator. The DFSA’s 2025 AI Survey found that 52% of DFSA Authorised Firms in DIFC were already using AI, up from 33% in 2024. Generative AI adoption increased by 166% year-on-year, while 60% of firms expected to increase their use of AI during the following 12 months and 75% expected increased adoption over three years.
That growth also creates a governance challenge. The same DFSA survey found that although 60% of firms had some form of AI governance framework, 21% lacked clear accountability or oversight mechanisms. For financial institutions, responsible AI implementation in global finance is therefore shifting from an innovation question to a regulatory-control question involving model governance, data integrity, accountability, customer protection and operational risk.
Responsible AI implementation in global finance will become particularly important as AI moves deeper into lending decisions, transaction monitoring, wealth management, customer service, fraud detection and compliance operations. The competitive advantage will increasingly belong to businesses that can deploy AI at scale while maintaining explainability, governance and defensible regulatory controls.
Blockchain remains part of the UAE’s digital infrastructure strategy, but the timeline should be stated correctly. The Emirates Blockchain Strategy set a target of migrating 50% of federal government transactions to blockchain by 2021—not 2030. In 2026, the federal government has moved toward a newer objective: deploying Agentic AI across 50% of government sectors, services and operations within two years. For fintech businesses, this points to a broader shift from standalone blockchain experimentation toward integrated AI, distributed-ledger, API and digital-payment infrastructure.
UAE Financial Infrastructure and Fintech Roadmap
2023 — FIT Programme & Digital Dirham strategy launched
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2024 — Open Finance regulation and first cross-border Digital Dirham transaction through mBridge
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2025 — Digital Dirham policy framework develops; Open Finance infrastructure expands; DIFC AI adoption reaches 52%
↓
2026 — FIT execution, regulated Open Finance expansion, rapid GenAI integration and federal Agentic AI transformation
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2027–2030+ — Greater convergence of digital currency, API-based finance, AI governance, tokenisation and automated financial infrastructure
This should be presented as an analytical roadmap based on the UAE’s current initiatives, not as an official CBUAE FIT timetable extending to 2030.
For investors, this means the UAE isn’t just a safe bet – it’s a growth bet. The Dubai fintech ecosystem and the Abu Dhabi fintech hub give companies a launchpad into the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, while frameworks like DIFC and ADGM keep capital comfortable. The difference entering 2026 is that this opportunity is increasingly supported by national financial infrastructure rather than ecosystem momentum alone.
London retains deeper legacy capital markets and a significantly larger established financial sector, so the next decade should not be framed as belonging exclusively to Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The stronger conclusion is that the UAE is building one of the world’s most integrated test cases for digital currency, Open Finance, regulated digital assets and AI-enabled financial services—giving it a credible basis to compete with London, Singapore and other established global centres throughout the next phase of fintech development.
Conclusion
The story entering 2026 is more nuanced than a simple transfer of the fintech crown. Finalized 2025 data shows that London defended its position as the world’s second-largest fintech funding market with $3.6 billion, while UAE fintech investment 2025 reached a record $2.5 billion and placed the Emirates fourth globally. The significance is not that the UAE permanently displaced the UK, but that Dubai and Abu Dhabi have established themselves as credible institutional competitors to one of the world’s deepest financial centres.
What we’re watching is the establishment of a competitive, dual-hub relationship between London and the UAE’s financial free zones. The Dubai fintech ecosystem has developed significant institutional depth through DIFC, which ended 2025 with 8,844 active companies and 1,677 AI and FinTech organisations, while the Abu Dhabi fintech hub continues to expand through ADGM, where Assets Under Management rose 36% in 2025 and accelerated to 57% year-on-year growth in Q1 2026.
Dubai and Abu Dhabi have therefore evolved from emerging challengers into institutional benchmarks across several areas of next-generation finance. Dubai has developed a specialised digital-asset regulatory architecture and a rapidly expanding AI-enabled financial sector, with 52% of DFSA-authorised DIFC firms already using AI and generative AI adoption increasing 166% year-on-year. Abu Dhabi, meanwhile, has strengthened its position in asset management and private credit, supported by ADGM’s dedicated Private Credit Fund framework and the continued arrival of global credit and alternative-asset managers.
London still brings greater historical depth, broader capital markets and a larger established fintech base. The UAE brings a different competitive model: specialised regulatory jurisdictions, sovereign-linked capital, rapid institutional expansion and increasingly integrated digital-asset, AI and private-market infrastructure. For investors and founders, the choice is therefore no longer between an established market and an emerging one; it is between two sophisticated ecosystems with different regulatory timelines, capital structures and routes to scale.
For companies planning their next stage of growth, 2026 is the year to make those structural decisions deliberately. ADEPTS can support fintech businesses in preparing their UAE business models, entity structures, tax positions, financial controls and regulatory-readiness frameworks before licensing, fundraising or cross-border expansion. The opportunity is substantial—but the businesses best positioned to capture it will be those that enter Dubai, Abu Dhabi or the wider UAE with a model built for the compliance standards now taking shape.
FAQs:
London still has the deeper and more established financial-services talent pool, but Dubai and Abu Dhabi are expanding rapidly. DIFC’s workforce reached 50,200 professionals in 2025, while ADGM’s workforce increased 51% from 29,338 to 44,339. DIFC also expanded its AI and FinTech community to 1,677 organisations. These figures do not measure engineers specifically, but they demonstrate the scale at which the UAE is attracting financial, technology and professional-services talent into the Dubai fintech ecosystem and Abu Dhabi fintech hub.
Digital payments remain the largest segment. Mordor Intelligence estimates that digital payments represented 56.88% of the UAE fintech market in 2025. Neobanking, wealthtech, embedded finance and digital assets are also expanding, while regulated crypto derivatives became more significant in 2026 after VARA’s Exchange Services Rulebook introduced a formal Exchange-Traded Derivatives framework covering products such as futures, options and perpetual ETDs.
The tax advantage needs to be stated carefully. A company established in DIFC, ADGM or another UAE Free Zone does not automatically pay 0% Corporate Tax. A Qualifying Free Zone Person may benefit from 0% Corporate Tax on Qualifying Income, while Taxable Income that does not satisfy the Qualifying Income definition is subject to 9%. Under the general UAE Corporate Tax framework, Taxable Income above AED 375,000 is generally subject to the 9% rate. Fintech founders should therefore assess their activities, customers, substance and income streams before assuming that a Free Zone structure produces a 0% tax result.
Yes, but market entry is not “plug-and-play” for regulated financial businesses. In DIFC, a firm conducting Financial Services must obtain DFSA authorisation. In ADGM, a financial-services applicant works through the FSRA process, receives an In-Principle Approval where successful, fulfils conditions including obtaining its commercial licence and establishing the required operating infrastructure, and only then receives Financial Services Permission to commence regulated activities. The practical model is therefore a combination of entity establishment and activity-specific regulatory authorisation rather than a single generic licence.
UK fintechs need to map their existing UK permissions against the UAE regulatory perimeter rather than assuming that FCA authorisation transfers automatically. Depending on the activity, a business may fall under the CBUAE, DFSA, FSRA or VARA framework. Product design, customer type, capital requirements, AML/CFT controls, local substance, banking arrangements and entity structure may all need adjustment. Sharia-compliant structuring is relevant for certain products and customer segments, but it is not a universal requirement for every UK fintech entering the UAE.
The UAE combines cybersecurity with fraud and financial-crime controls. The CBUAE requires relevant licensed institutions to maintain anti-fraud frameworks covering prevention, detection, investigation and response, including fraud-risk assessments, access controls, segregation of duties and monitoring systems. Federal financial-sector legislation also requires robust mechanisms against unauthorised transactions, social engineering and identity theft.
For virtual assets, VARA strengthened this risk-based approach in June 2026 by publishing AML/CFT Business Risk Assessment Guidance. The guidance requires licensed VASPs to base their risk assessments on their actual business model and operational risk data rather than relying on generic compliance templates.
UAE banks increasingly act as partners, customers and distribution channels for fintech businesses rather than simply competitors. Emirates NBD, for example, partnered with Techstars in July 2026 to connect AI and FinTech startups directly with enterprise banking use cases across compliance, wealth management, SME banking and capital markets. The bank has also partnered with fintech platforms such as Appro and global technology providers to modernise customer onboarding, payments and fraud controls.
At the institutional level, ADGM is also attracting major international financial firms. BBVA was among the global institutions that established an ADGM presence during 2025, alongside a wider expansion of banks, asset managers, digital-asset companies and investment firms. These are separate trends—bank-fintech partnerships and international firms establishing UAE offices—but together they deepen the Abu Dhabi and Dubai financial ecosystems.
COP28 materially accelerated the UAE’s sustainable-finance agenda, although green fintech development should not be attributed to the summit alone. The CBUAE and COP28 Presidency launched a TechSprint specifically focused on AI, blockchain and other technologies for sustainable finance, while the UAE banking sector committed to mobilising AED 1 trillion in sustainable finance by 2030. These initiatives strengthened demand for climate-data platforms, ESG analytics, digital carbon-market infrastructure and technology-enabled sustainable-finance products.
VARA now operates a mature licensing and supervisory framework rather than simply providing general guidance for crypto businesses. Its public register currently displays 52 licensed-VASP results, reflecting the continued expansion of Dubai’s regulated virtual-asset sector. I would not use the outline’s claim that VARA announced its “50th crypto licence in May 2026,” because I could not verify an official VARA announcement supporting that specific milestone or date.
More importantly for operators, VARA’s updated Exchange Services Rulebook became effective on 31 March 2026 and introduced detailed Exchange-Traded Derivative Services rules. Only Exchange VASPs explicitly authorised by VARA may offer these products, with additional requirements covering suitability, segregation, disclosures, margin, leverage, monitoring and reporting. VARA also strengthened Travel Rule and AML/CFT requirements during 2026, making Dubai’s crypto regime increasingly institutional rather than merely licence-focused.
ADEPTS can support fintech founders in translating regulatory requirements into workable accounting, tax and operational structures. This can include entity structuring, Corporate Tax and VAT analysis, financial projections, bookkeeping and reporting systems, AML/CFT readiness, internal controls and documentation supporting applications or ongoing compliance under VARA, DFSA and FSRA frameworks.
ADEPTS does not replace the regulator or determine whether a licence will be granted. Its role is to help businesses build the financial and compliance infrastructure needed to move from incorporation and regulatory planning toward commercially operational, audit-ready businesses in the UAE fintech ecosystem.
References
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https://www.centralbank.ae/en/our-operations/fintech-digital-transformation/ - Central Bank of the UAE. (2025b, July 31). Digital Dirham: A primer on the UAE’s Central Bank Digital Currency (Policy Paper No. 01/2025).
https://www.centralbank.ae/en/news-and-publications/publications/cbuae-policy-papers/digital-dirham-a-primer-on-the-uae-s-central-bank-digital-currency/ - Central Bank of the UAE. (2025c, October 22). Open Finance.
https://www.centralbank.ae/en/our-operations/fintech-digital-transformation/open-finance/ - Central Bank of the UAE. (n.d.). 11.2 Anti-Fraud Framework. CBUAE Rulebook.
https://rulebook.centralbank.ae/en/rulebook/112-anti-fraud-framework - Department for Work and Pensions, & The Pensions Regulator. (2026, July 10). TPR Regulation Action Plan: Growth Goals 2026 to 2027. GOV.UK.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/tpr-regulation-action-plan-growth-goals-2026-to-2027 - Dubai Financial Services Authority. (2025, November 12). New DFSA AI survey: Generative AI adoption has nearly tripled within the DIFC in last 12 months as governance continues to develop.
https://www.dfsa.ae/news/new-dfsa-ai-survey-generative-ai-adoption-has-nearly-tripled-within-difc-last-12-months-governance-continues-develop - Dubai Financial Services Authority. (2026, June 25). DFSA Annual Report 2025: The DFSA records third consecutive year of double-digit registration growth as Dubai advances to highest-ever Global Financial Centres Index ranking.
https://www.dfsa.ae/news/dfsa-annual-report-2025-dfsa-records-third-consecutive-year-double-digit-registration-growth-dubai-advances-highest-ever-global - Dubai Financial Services Authority. (n.d.). Authorisation services: Overview.
https://www.dfsa.ae/what-we-do/authorisation-services/overview - Dubai FinTech Summit. (2024, May 13). Dubai FinTech Summit concludes with over 8,000 visitors from 118 countries. https://dubaifintechsummit.com/dubai-fintech-summit-concludes-with-over-8000-visitors-from-118-countries/
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https://tax.gov.ae/en/media.centre/news/federal.tax.authority.issues.corporate.tax.guide.on.free.zone.persons.aspx - Financial Conduct Authority. (2025, June 10). PS25/6: Private Intermittent Securities and Capital Exchange System: Sandbox arrangements. https://www.fca.org.uk/node/142916
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https://www.fca.org.uk/publications/policy-statements/cryptoasset-regime - Financial Conduct Authority. (2026c, June 30). FCA sets landmark crypto rules to cement the UK’s place as a global hub.
https://www.fca.org.uk/news/press-releases/fca-sets-landmark-crypto-rules-cement-uks-place-global-hub - Financial Conduct Authority. (2026d, July 22). A new regime for cryptoasset regulation.
https://www.fca.org.uk/firms/new-regime-cryptoasset-regulation - Innovate Finance. (2026, January 7). Global FinTech investment rises 21% in 2025, reaching $53 billion across 5,918 deals: The UK reclaims second spot in global rankings.
https://www.innovatefinance.com/announcements/global-fintech-investment-rises-21-in-2025-reaching-53-billion-across-5918-deals-the-uk-reclaims-second-spot-in-global-rankings/ - Ministry of Economy, United Arab Emirates. (2025, February 26). The first day of “Investopia 2025” outlines the features of global investment in the new economy and possible opportunities to enhance economic growth regionally and internationally.
https://www.moec.gov.ae/en/-/the-first-day-of-investopia-2025-outlines-the-features-of-global-investment-in-the-new-economy-and-possible-opportunities-to-enhance-economic-growth-regionally-and-internationally - The United Arab Emirates Government. (2024, December 30). Emirates Blockchain Strategy 2021. The Official Platform of the UAE Government. https://u.ae/en/about-the-uae/strategies-initiatives-and-awards/strategies-plans-and-visions/strategies-plans-and-visions-untill-2021/emirates-blockchain-strategy-2021
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https://www.vara.ae/en/licenses-and-register/public-register
