Global law firm Perez-Llorca has launched operations in Abu Dhabi, with its office in finance hub ADGM, as the emirate continues to attract international companies.
The new office will help the law firm to "strengthen its relationship with key financial players in the Middle East and support their investments in the markets where the firm operates", it said in a statement on Wednesday.
Perez-Llorca, an Ibero-American firm, operates in Spain, Portugal, Mexico, Colombia and Peru. It also carries out multi-jurisdictional work in Europe and has offices in Barcelona, Brussels, Lisbon, London, New York and Singapore.
“Abu Dhabi has established itself as one of the leading international financial hubs and an increasingly important nexus for institutional capital," said Goncalo Capela Godinho, the partner leading the Abu Dhabi office.
The move will enable the company to "work more closely with the investors who are driving some of the most significant transactions and capital allocation decisions globally", he added.
The UAE, along with other Gulf states, was hit by Iranian attacks during the regional war that began on February 28. But the conflict – which has nearly ended with a potential peace deal – has not deterred international financial firms from setting up an operational base in Abu Dhabi.
The UAE capital has in recent months attracted high-profile companies, including private credit lender Blue Owl Capital, tech-focused US private equity company Vista Equity Partners, Man Group, the world’s largest listed hedge fund, Barings, and Bain Capital.
Several trillion-dollar asset managers are also anchored at ADGM. Those include BlackRock, State Street, Prudential Financial's global asset management unit PGIM, Chicago investment company Nuveen and Capital Group.
ADGM also posted a 57 per cent increase in assets under management in the first quarter of this year. The number of asset and fund managers at the centre rose 24 per cent annually during the three-month period to 179, it said last month.
“Geopolitical cycles are a fact of life in any international market," said Pedro Perez-Llorca, senior partner of the firm. "Our decision to establish a presence in Abu Dhabi is based on a long-term vision and the conviction that the region will continue to play an increasingly significant role in global investment flows."
The Abu Dhabi office will become part of Perez-Llorca’s global network and is a "long-term structural strategy rather than a standalone expansion", the company said. The move comes as commercial and strategic ties between Gulf states and Perez-Llorca’s core markets, including Latin America, have strengthened considerably, it added.
Perez-Llorca’s decision to establish a presence in Abu Dhabi reflects the "growing importance of the Gulf in international investment and commercial activity", said Arvind Ramamurthy, chief market development officer at ADGM. "As capital becomes increasingly global in scope, demand for sophisticated legal and advisory expertise continues to grow alongside it."
