Dubai has maintained its top position for greenfield foreign direct investment in the first half of 2025, anchored by a record number of projects, underscoring an accelerating economic diversification strategy.
The emirate attracted 643 greenfield FDI projects in the six months to the end of June, the Government of Dubai Media Office said on Monday, citing the Financial Times' fDi Markets data.
That was 478 more than the next closest city and the highest yet for a half-year period fDI Markets began tracking data since 2003, it said.
The data showed that Dubai had a global market share of 8 per cent and a 56 per cent share of the Middle East’s total greenfield FDI projects.
It also represents Dubai's hold on the top spot for the eighth consecutive half-year period. In March, fDi Markets said the emirate was the No 1 destination for greenfield FDI for the fourth year in a row.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence, attributed Dubai’s streak to its “futuristic development vision” under Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, and “its continued success as a preferred global investment destination and global centre for creating new opportunities”.
“The strength and resilience of Dubai’s economy continues to inspire confidence among global investors in its ability to reimagine the future and unlock emerging global technological trends and sustainable sectors,” Sheikh Hamdan said.
Greenfield FDI involves a company establishing operations in another country by building new structures.
This sector has become a strength not just of Dubai, but of the overall UAE FDI. Last month, the UAE was ranked as the second-most preferred destination for FDI, behind the US and ahead of the UK, India and Germany, state news agency Wam quoted an FDI Intelligence report as saying.
The UAE doubled down on its commitment to foster economic growth through sustainable investment at this year's Aim Congress in Abu Dhabi, focusing on preparing for the economy of the future underpinned by using advancements in clean energy and technology, particularly artificial intelligence.
In June, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development's World Investment Report 2025 found that the UAE ranked 10th globally for inbound FDI in 2024, receiving about Dh167 billion ($45.5 billion) in inflows – a figure the country intends to increase to Dh1.3 trillion by 2031.
The latest data also comes as Dubai aims to double the size of its economy to Dh32 trillion over the next decade and establish the emirate among the top three global cities as part of its D33 strategy. The plan aims to support 30 private companies in their push to become so-called unicorns – start-ups worth more than $1 billion.
“Dubai remains committed to providing businesses the most rewarding environment to achieve sustained growth while offering investors abundant incentive to partner in such growth by actively engaging with promising new ideas and sectors that elevate living standards for people in the UAE and across the world,” Sheikh Hamdan said.
The Dubai FDI Monitor, published by the Department of Economy and Tourism, showed that FDI capital into the emirate surged 62 per cent annually to Dh40.4 billion in the first six months of 2025, with the number of announced FDI projects up 28.7 per cent to 1,090.
The number of jobs created jumped 46.7 per cent year-on-year to 38,433 during the period, it added.
Greenfield projects accounted for 52.4 per cent of total inflows, comprises new forms of investment (36.1 per cent), reinvestments (4 per cent), venture capital-backed projects (4.3 per cent), and mergers and acquisitions (3.2 per cent), the DET said.
Sectors that excelled include business services, consumer products, food and beverages, software and IT services, financial services, real estate, tourism and transport-linked activities, the data showed.
“This performance showcases the city’s resilience, agility and capacity to keep pace with global economic transformations, strengthened by enduring public-private partnerships,” said Helal Almarri, director general of the DET.
“The strong first‑half performance confirms that even amid shifting global dynamics, Dubai offers certainty, scale and opportunities that appeal to investors worldwide,” he added.
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Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
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Countries recognising Palestine
France, UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, San Marino and Andorra
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl
Power: 153hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 200Nm at 4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Price: Dh99,000
On sale: now
