Dubai continues to advance its position as the Middle East, Africa and South Asia’s (MEASA) leading global financial centre with the DIFC surpassing 8,000 active registered companies, including over 1,000 entities being regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), the Centre’s independent regulator. Additionally, the DIFC Courts has recorded over AED 17.5bn in total case values so far this year.
On 12 May 2025, the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) announced that nearly 100 firms have expressed interest in its first-ever Tokenisation Regulatory Sandbox, marking a significant leap forward in DIFC’s fintech ecosystem. This initiative forms part of the DFSA’s Innovation Testing Licence (ITL) programme and reinforces the regulator’s ongoing commitment to fostering responsible financial innovation.
With a record AED 25 billion in assets under management and heightened enforcement actions, the DFSA solidifies its role as a global financial regulator.
The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) has released its 2024 Annual Report, highlighting a year of significant growth, robust regulatory oversight, and a clear vision for the future of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).
Zubin Muriya is a seasoned Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) professional with over two decades of cross-jurisdictional experience in banking regulatory compliance, financial crime risk management, corporate governance framework, and audit advisory. His work across India and the GCC (UAE, Qatar, Bahrain) reflects a career rooted in regulatory rigor and operational integrity.
