Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), a leading financial hub for the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (Measa) region, today announced that the centre posted strong growth and reached major milestones in the first half of 2016.

DIFC continually ranks highly in different international rankings and earlier this year was placed number one in the Middle East and Africa region and number 13 globally in the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI), it said.  

This is a significant increase from last year in this ranking which looks at the competitiveness of financial centres based on 25,650 financial centre assessments. This has resulted in DIFC becoming the financial services hub of choice for the entire region.

Testament to its world-class connectivity, as well as its regulatory and legal systems, significant growth and milestones have been reached on the journey towards its 2024 strategy, which will see the centre triple in size over the course of 10 years.

DIFC governor Essa Kazim, stated: “Dubai and DIFC serve as the gateway to the world’s fastest growing markets across the Measa region.  This is reflected in our latest results and initiatives, which represent a major milestone in delivering on the centre’s forward-looking 2024 strategy.

“We continue to invest in building our world-class ecosystem, and are committed to creating an environment that enables our clients to take advantage of new opportunities that arise in the region.”

The results were characterised by developments in the following areas:
* Growth in new companies: DIFC reached another milestone of crossing over 1,500 firms, with 1,539  companies now based in the centre. As many as 143 new companies joined DIFC in the first half of the year alone, representing a 16 per cent growth on this time last year.

Newly registered firms included companies taking the highest category licences, such as HSBC, which announced moving its Middle East headquarters and $40 billion of assets to the centre.
The first six months also saw reputable regional banks join the DIFC, including Ahli United Bank Limited – the first GCC bank to receive a Category One (full branch) licence, and Bank of Palestine, which set up its first overseas operation.  In other key sectors, the centre welcomed its first Indian reinsurance firm, HDFC International Life and Re Company Limited, to its portfolio, along with leading Kuwaiti asset management firm, Kamco Investment Company Limited, which established its first international office in DIFC.

The 1,539 active firms in the centre are now made up of a record 425 financial services firms (an increase of 11 per cent on this time last year), 914 non-financial firms (a 22 per cent increase on this time last year) and 192 retailers (two per cent increase on this time last year), taking a further 81,300 sq ft of leased space. Occupancy rates remain extremely high representing the ongoing demand for DIFC space and in retail, the new Gate Avenue at DIFC project will significantly increase the size of the centre’s retail portfolio.

These global firms come from around the world with 33 per cent from the Middle East region, 18 per cent from the EU, 15 per cent from the UK, 12 per cent from the US, 12 per cent from Asia and a further 10 per cent from elsewhere in the world.

Job creation and workforce: DIFC surpassed 21,000 employees working in the centre’s firms, an important landmark as the centre looks to target 50,000 employees by 2024, meaning 42 per cent of the target has been met. 21,076 employees, an increase of 14 per cent or over 2,500 new professionals, from this time last year, now work in the centre.

Infrastructure development: DIFC has continued to build on its world-class infrastructure to ensure that the centre remains the optimal place to do business. Major initiatives have included the launch of Gate Avenue at DIFC, a retail development which will link up all the centre’s areas through 660,000 sq ft of premium retail space hosting over 150 exclusive dining, shopping and leisure attractions. This will enhance the connectivity of the centre and increase its attractiveness as a place to live, work and visit. Set for completion at the end of 2017, the project represents the centre becoming a premium lifestyle destination and a new concept of urban development in the region.

The infrastructure was further developed by the addition of a number of real estate offerings. The joint venture between Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD) and Brookfield Property Partners broke ground on its $1-billion development in DIFC in January. The 282-m-high, 54-storey ICD Brookfield Place tower will contain more than 900,000 sq ft of Grade A office space and connect to a 150,000-sq-ft, five-storey retail centre. In March, luxury hotel chain Four Seasons opened its second property in Dubai, an eight-storey hotel located in DIFC’s Gate Village, featuring 106 rooms and suites. In addition, strong construction progress has been made on Gate Village Building 11. Across a total built-up area of 200,000 sq ft, the premises will offer 160,000 sq ft (82 per cent) of office space and nearly 40,000 sq ft (18 per cent) for retail and food and beverage (F&B) outlets.

Further recognition was given to DIFC’s innovative, co-located data centre, which gives clients real-time, secure access to markets, by becoming the first data centre in the UAE to receive the internationally recognised Management & Operations Stamp of Approval from the Uptime Institute. This is an important endorsement of the centre’s cutting edge technologies and ability to meet client servicing needs, which are increasingly built around data.

At the same time, DIFC signed an important agreement with Dewa's Etihad Esco, to replace nearly 30,000 LED lightbulbs in order to drive 72 per cent energy savings over the next six years.

International partnerships: In line with the centre’s 2024 strategy, focused on facilitating business transactions, trade and investments across the South-South corridor, DIFC leadership undertook a number of highly successful roadshows to international markets, such as China, India, Singapore as well as London and Luxembourg.

Looking ahead
Over the rest of 2016 and the next year, DIFC will remain focused on its growth strategy and leverage the momentum of the previous first half. This includes continuing to build up the centre’s client base, developing new synergies and growth in its target sectors.

One area of active development is fintech, where the DIFC will support, encourage and foster greater innovation in the centre. The DIFC will also explore opportunities to forge new links further across the South-South corridor and the Measa region, which is anticipated to be worth some $10 trillion by 2020. As ever, further investment will be made to enhance the centre’s physical and regulatory architecture in line with its 2024 strategy. - TradeArabia News Service