The Abu Dhabi Global Market is one of the world's fastest-growing financial districts, and its reputation as a step-ahead regulator is reflected in its strategy when it comes to digital assets.
On Friday, its Financial Services Regulatory Authority signed a preliminary agreement with the UAE Ministry of Interior to boost its fight against crimes in this sector.
The points of collaboration include information exchange, boosting risk mitigation frameworks and supporting the UAE's national strategy to protect the financial system against evolving threats in the digital asset landscape, in addition to joint training programmes and enhanced investigative efforts. it said.
“The FSRA is focused on collaboration with UAE authorities to proactively fight against financial crime. Financial crime is constantly evolving and it is crucial that regulators stay ahead of potential threats," Emmanuel Givanakis, chief executive of the FSRA, said in a statement.
That is also the latest in a long list of programmes designed by ADGM to encourage and protect investors in the growing space, helping the FSRA to become one of the first jurisdictions worldwide to implement a comprehensive and robust regulatory framework for crypto and digital asset activities since 2018.
Detailed guidance
Part of ADGM's mission is to support the development of digital assets under a comprehensive and progressive regulatory framework, "as part of its holistic approach".
In its multipronged guiding principles governing its approach to virtual asset supervision, the FSRA has made it clear that only the "high[est] level" of regulations and co-operation are to be implemented to ensure the credibility of the sector.
These principles include a robust and transparent risk-based regulatory framework, high standards for authorisation, preventing money laundering and other financial crime, risk-sensitive supervision, commitment to enforce on regulatory breaches and international co-operation. These have been the basis of Abu Dhabi's numerous initiatives rolled out to encourage the use of digital assets.
These, in turn, are helping address the "full range" of risks associated with digital asset activities, including risks relating to money laundering and financial crime, consumer protection, technology governance, custody and exchange operations, according to the FSRA.
Tailored events
Abu Dhabi Finance Week, which held its third edition at ADGM earlier this month, has become a fixture in the capital's financial scene, attracting the world's biggest industry players and thought leaders.
The summit is one of the ways ADGM is able to tap experts to provide insights on the state of digital assets and where they are headed.
The capital also hosted the inaugural Abu Dhabi Business Week and Bitcoin Mena earlier in December, where cryptocurrencies and other digital assets were front and centre.
In addition, ADGM also helped launch the Middle East, Africa and Asia Crypto and Blockchain Association, a non-profit organisation comprising industry majors such as Binance and Crypto.com to help draw up strategies addressing the industry's challenges.
Operational licence grants
Several global cryptocurrency players have sought to establish a foothold in the UAE and ADGM's efforts have been able to attract some of the biggest names, such as eToro and M2, allowing these companies to operate as a brokers for securities, derivatives and crypto assets, and platforms institutional and retail investors to buy, sell and hold custody of virtual assets.
The rising stock of virtual assets has prompted governments to figure out rules to rein in the largely unregulated industry. ADGM has continuously sought to address this in order for Abu Dhabi to become an attractive destination.
Never-ending improvement
ADGM continuously seeks to improve its already-robust digital asset strategies, keeping in step or even ahead of its peers globally. ADGM has rolled out a slew of updated guidelines to improve those already in place in order to further boost confidence in the sector.
Earlier this month, the FSRA introduced a regulatory framework for the issuance of fiat-referenced tokens – a category of stablecoins backed by high-quality and liquid assets denominated in the same currency – which expands the suite of digital assets that can be offered in a regulated environment.
The FSRA said this is aimed to ensure financial stability and investor protection in facets such as reserve assets, governance and integrity, and transparent disclosure, among others.
Gathering opinion
Public consultation is key in drawing up frameworks for regulation. For instance, earlier this month, ADGM announced the publication of a new consultation paper that sets out proposed amendments to its regulatory framework for authorised persons conducting regulated activities involving virtual assets.
In addition, ADGM is also seeking feedback on the criteria to be applied in determining whether non-ADGM issued fiat-referenced tokens should be accepted within ADGM. The paper also proposes to expand the scope of investments in which venture capital funds may invest. The consultation period for this paper will close on January 31.
Penalties for offenders
No sector is perfect, and there are instances in which financial services providers would run afoul of the law. ADGM takes this very seriously.
While no company directly engaged in digital assets has been fined for violations, ADGM has meted out penalties to financial companies such as Pyppl, Sarwa Digital Wealth and Aarna Capital for various breaches.
This serves as a deterrent for companies to ensure they uphold the highest standards and promote transparency in their operations, especially for those in digital assets, whose regulations are still evolving and trust needs to be strengthened.
Crime-fighting
Friday's announcement comes as virtual assets – known to be high-risk assets – have become an emerging favourite target for hackers: the value of cryptocurrencies stolen in 2024 hit about $2.2 billion, a 21 per cent leap from last year, as attacks hit a record 302, Chainalysis said in its 2025 Crypto Crime Report on Thursday.
Any threat to digital assets will cause severe reputational and financial consequences, which is why ADGM has pledged to "protect the financial ecosystem and lead regulatory efforts in line with international best practices and federal laws", Mr Givanakis said on Friday.
"Our goal is to build long lasting partnerships across the UAE to ensure prevention of financial crime … including the use of virtual assets. We also seek to raise awareness internally and locally to ensure proper understanding of financial crime risks and assist actively in the efforts conducted on a national level."
Results
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,600m; Winner: Rawat Al Reef, Adrie de Vries (jockey), Abdallah Al Hammadi (trainer)
5.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: Noof KB, Richard Mullen, Ernst Oertel
6pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: AF Seven Skies, Bernardo Pinheiro, Qaiss Aboud
6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: Jabalini, Szczepan Mazur, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
7pm: UAE Arabian Derby – Prestige (PA) Dh150,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: Dergham Athbah, Richard Mullen, Mohamed Daggash
7.30pm: Emirates Championship – Group 1 (PA) Dh1,000,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: Somoud, Richard Mullen, Jean de Roualle
8pm: Abu Dhabi Championship – Group 3 (TB) Dh380,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: Irish Freedom, Antonio Fresu, Satish Seemar
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
BRAZIL%20SQUAD
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, Group B
Barcelona v Inter Milan
Camp Nou, Barcelona
Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
Women’s World T20, Asia Qualifier
UAE results
Beat China by 16 runs
Lost to Thailand by 10 wickets
Beat Nepal by five runs
Beat Hong Kong by eight wickets
Beat Malaysia by 34 runs
Standings (P, W, l, NR, points)
1. Thailand 5 4 0 1 9
2. UAE 5 4 1 0 8
3. Nepal 5 2 1 2 6
4. Hong Kong 5 2 2 1 5
5. Malaysia 5 1 4 0 2
6. China 5 0 5 0 0
Final
Thailand v UAE, Monday, 7am
Racecard
5pm: Al Maha Stables – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,600m
5.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,600m
6pm: Emirates Fillies Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 1,600m
6.30pm: Emirates Colts Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 1,600m
7pm: The President’s Cup – Group 1 (PA) Dh2,500,000 (T) 2,200m
7.30pm: The President’s Cup – Listed (TB) Dh380,000 (T) 1,400m
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
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.”
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French Touch
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(Verve)
Company%20profile
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Mia Man’s tips for fermentation
- Start with a simple recipe such as yogurt or sauerkraut
- Keep your hands and kitchen tools clean. Sanitize knives, cutting boards, tongs and storage jars with boiling water before you start.
- Mold is bad: the colour pink is a sign of mold. If yogurt turns pink as it ferments, you need to discard it and start again. For kraut, if you remove the top leaves and see any sign of mold, you should discard the batch.
- Always use clean, closed, airtight lids and containers such as mason jars when fermenting yogurt and kraut. Keep the lid closed to prevent insects and contaminants from getting in.
