DIFC Deepens Global Insurance Reach Arabian Post

Property and liability lines were among the main contributors to the 2025 performance, supported by marine, aviation, transport and other specialist classes. These segments have gained importance as businesses across the Gulf and wider MEASA region seek larger and more complex cover for construction, logistics, aviation, energy and cross-border trade.

More than 135 insurance and reinsurance firms now operate from DIFC, spanning underwriting, broking, captive management and specialist risk transfer. The centre authorised 28 insurance-related firms across 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, including Allianz Trade Middle East Limited, Atradius Trade Credit Insurance Ltd, BMS Limited, Howden Reinsurance Brokers Limited, Manulife Middle East Limited, QIC Limited, Ryan Specialty Limited, Sun Life Limited and Transamerica Life Ltd.

Several established players have also expanded their presence, including Gallagher Re Ltd, Manulife Middle East Limited, Markel International Dubai Limited and MENA Re Underwriters Limited. Their growth reflects rising demand for local execution backed by international capital, technical expertise and regulatory certainty.

Arif Amiri, Chief Executive Officer of DIFC Authority, said the sector's expansion showed the confidence international markets place in the centre as a jurisdiction for sophisticated risk transfer, underwriting and innovation. He said Dubai's place among the top global financial centres for insurance supported DIFC's aim of deepening market capacity, attracting long-term institutional players and backing sustainable growth across regional and international markets.

DIFC's appeal rests partly on its legal and regulatory architecture, including an English-language common-law framework, independent courts and a regulator overseeing financial services conducted in or from the centre. For global insurers and reinsurers, that framework offers a familiar operating environment while giving access to markets where insurance penetration remains below levels seen in North America, Europe and parts of Asia.

The wider financial ecosystem has added to that pull. DIFC is home to 8,844 active firms, including 1,052 regulated entities, more than 500 wealth and asset management firms, 290 banking and capital markets firms, 70 brokerage entities and over 1,677 AI, FinTech and innovation companies. Its workforce has grown to more than 50,200 professionals, creating a concentration of legal, actuarial, broking, investment and advisory talent that supports complex insurance transactions.

Dubai's broader rise as a financial centre has also strengthened DIFC's insurance proposition. The city moved to seventh place globally in the Global Financial Centres Index published in March 2026, its highest ranking to date, and remains the leading financial centre in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region. That standing is important for insurers seeking proximity to capital markets, banks, asset managers, sovereign investors and corporate clients.

Competition, however, is intensifying. Abu Dhabi, Riyadh and Doha are expanding financial-sector ambitions, while global insurance hubs such as London, Singapore, Bermuda and Zurich retain deep pools of underwriting capital and specialist expertise. DIFC's challenge will be to keep attracting decision-making authority, not just representative offices, while ensuring that growth in premium volumes is matched by risk discipline, claims capability and technical underwriting standards.