Dubai and Cyprus regulatory authorities have signed a memorandum of understanding to share information and co-operate in suspected market abuse cases.

The pact would define co-operation between the two watchdogs, allowing swifter intervention and cooperation and cut out bureaucracy, officials from both regulators said.

"I think places like Cyprus and Dubai will become increasingly important pathways in the new world of capital mobility," saud David Knott, chief executive of the Dubai Financial Services Authority.

Knott said the global turmoil in financial markets in the past twelve months had highlighted the need for tighter co-operation between regulatory authorities worldwide.

"We have to monitor capital transactions better than we have done. We have to understand where risk is residing, where liquidity and leverage may represent problems ... and I think places like Cyprus and Dubai will become increasingly important in that equation," Knott said.

"The necessity for enhanced cooperation between regulators has never been greater," said Georgios Charalambous, chairman of Cyprus's Securities Commission.

Hundreds of investment funds are based on the east Mediterranean island, which has a thriving financial sector mainly by attracting business from eastern Europe and Russia.-Reuters