Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is now home to 5,523 active companies, marking a 26% surge from 2022’s count of 4,377. 2023 saw a record-breaking influx of 1,451 new companies, a 34% surge, setting a historical milestone for DIFC.
In terms of financial performance, combined revenues in 2023 surged to nearly Dh1.3 billion, marking the fastest growth rate since inception and a 23% increase over 2022. Operating profit reached Dh859 million, up by 27%, while total assets soared to Dh18 billion, marking an 18% growth.
“DIFC is focused on expanding and deepening its pool of financial services firms and growth-stage innovation businesses, whose success contributes to both the UAE and Dubai’s economic growth,” said HH Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, First Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of the UAE and President of the DIFC. “Through strategic initiatives that support our partners’ development and expansion, we seek to provide a dynamic environment for innovation and enterprise to flourish. In close collaboration with our partner community, we are set to make DIFC an even more pivotal node in the global financial network.”
“Reflecting DIFC’s position as the primary choice for financial services related companies and innovation firms over the last 20 years, the results catapulted DIFC towards its Strategy 2030 targets which include doubling its contribution to Dubai GDP,” said HE Essa Kazim, Governor of DIFC.
DIFC witnessed a significant growth in financial and innovation-related companies, reaching 1,674 compared to 1,369 in 2022, up 22%. DIFC has also become the MEASA region’s largest wealth and asset management hub, hosting over 350 firms, primarily from the GCC, Europe, the UK, and the US, with 50 hedge fund-related firms, 15 of which were established in 2023.
“In just 20 years, DIFC has evolved into the region’s centre of excellence for the financial industry where the world converges to innovate and move” is capital,” said Arif Amiri, CEO of DIF” Authority. “Beingregion’s the region’s largest cluster of innovation and financial services means the ecosystem is uniquely scaled to a level where it can both capture existing opportunities and create sustainable economic growth.”