Dubai Financial Centre highlights status as major asset management hub

Dubai International Financial Centre, the mature global financial hub connecting the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) markets with the economies of Europe, Asia and the Americas, is participating at the four-day Fund Forum International 2015, in Monaco.

The annual fund management conference, taking place from June 29th to July 2nd at ‘The Grimaldi Forum', serves as a thought-leadership platform on subjects such as boutique funds, future of crowdfunding, and the adoption of technology to optimise client servicing. The gathering of fund managers, which also co-locates an exhibition centre to promote networking, has drawn the attendance of more than 1,200 senior level attendees, including some 600 plus key asset managers, and over 70 leading CEOs, CIOs and boardroom leaders.

A long-standing exhibitor at the forum, the platform serves as a facilitator for DIFC to leverage discussions with leading fund managers on the increasing potential of the asset management sector in Dubai and the wider region. In addition, as part of their efforts to showcase the centre's enabling investment ecosystem, key DIFC representatives attending the forum seek to highlight the financial hub's strategic access to emerging markets, as well as efficient financial systems and conducive legal and regulatory framework.

Commenting on DIFC's participation at the event, Arif Amiri, Deputy CEO, Dubai International Financial Centre Authority, DIFC, said, "The FundForum International provides a unique platform on a global scale for meeting decision-makers and presenting them with DIFC's decade-long economic growth story and key competitive advantages. Dubai's increased emphasis on diversifying the economy to curtail dependence on oil has led to significant redistribution of wealth.

"Fund managers have been the beneficiaries in this transition of investment re-allocation. Since their introduction only a decade ago in the DIFC, the asset management industry has been incredibly successful. Growing beyond US$10.4 billion in 2014, assets under management of fund managers and financial institutions in DIFC are now estimated to stand tall at US$250 billion by 2024."

Arif Amiri added, "The Middle East and North Africa region domiciles nine of the world's largest sovereign wealth funds with assets of approximately US$2 trillion. At the same time, the number of High Net-worth Individuals, HNWIs, across the region, both institutional and private wealth, has advanced significantly. Rising income level combined with lower inflation rates have led to an increase in the aggregate savings of the population across the region. We therefore see tremendous scope for the development of long-term savings and wealth solutions catering to the increasingly affluent and aspirational young population."

According to the 2014 World Wealth Report, the number of HNWIs across the Middle East surged by 16.0% in 2013 to 0.6 million, while total wealth reserves also registered an increase by 16.7 percent to US$2.1 trillion. Moreover, a PwC 2014 study unveiled that assets under management in the Middle East and Africa region are expected to rise to an estimated US$1.5 trillion by 2020, from a total of US$ 0.6 trillion in 2012, representing a compound annual growth rate of approximately 12 percent.