Dubai Named World Number One For Fintech, Moves Up In Global Rankings

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Dubai has been ranked the world's number one location for financial technology (fintech) by international industry professionals in the latest Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI).

The city remains the only financial centre in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region to feature in the global top ten, according to the index.

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The emirate's fintech leadership is maindly driven by the Dubai International Financial Centre's (DIFC) push into artificial intelligence and innovation, which helped Dubai climbed to second place globally for professional services.

Dubai's global reputation ranking also advanced, rising to sixth place worldwide, reflecting sustained international confidence in its financial ecosystem.

Dubai further retained its position as the financial centre expected to grow in significance, topping the "future potential" category for a fourth consecutive GFCI report.

The GFCI report is compiled by London-based consultancy Z/Yen in partnership with the China Development Institute. The latest edition drew on 39,531 assessments from financial industry professionals globally, combined with 143 instrumental factors to produce the rankings.

The 40th edition of the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI), released on Wednesday, placed Dubai among the world's top 10 financial centres, ranking it ninth, down two places from last year. Abu Dhabi was ranked 13th globally, jumping from 21st place last year.

Globally, New York topped, followed by London, Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai and Tokyo.

Drawing financial institutions

Essa Kazim, governor of DIFC, said the results reinforced Dubai's position as a leading financial centre and reflected the success of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33.

He added that DIFC had played a key role in drawing financial institutions, talent and innovation to the emirate while providing the regulatory and legal environment needed for sustainable growth.

Arif Amiri, CEO of DIFC Authority, said Dubai's GFCI standing was underpinned by the scale of DIFC as the region's largest ecosystem of regulated financial firms, spanning banking, capital markets, wealth and asset management, insurance and FinTech.

DIFC is home to 10,018 active firms, including 1,134 regulated entities – comprising 327 banks and capital markets firms, 71 brokerages, 165 insurance and reinsurance companies, and 592 wealth and asset management firms, including more than 100 hedge fund managers.

The centre also hosts 1,933 AI, FinTech and innovation firms and connects more than 50,200 professionals, positioning it as one of the top five FinTech hubs globally.

Zabeel District expansion

DIFC's ongoing 17.7 million sq ft Zabeel District expansion is expected to accommodate more than 42,000 companies and a workforce exceeding 125,000. The new district will include Grade A office space, an Innovation Hub, an AI campus, an expanded academy, residential and hospitality developments, and the Museum of Digital Art – the region's first museum dedicated to digital art and technology.

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