Dubai has climbed to seventh place among the world’s leading financial centres, its highest position on record, as the UAE continues to attract record levels of foreign investment and expand its financial and technology sectors.
The emirate moved up four places in the Global Financial Centres Index 39, published in March 2026 by Z/Yen Group in partnership with the China Development Institute. The ranking comes after the UAE attracted $48.3 billion, or AED 177.3 billion, in foreign direct investment in 2025.
Wael Rashid, Business Development Manager and Official Spokesperson at Evest, said the two developments should be viewed as part of a broader shift in the UAE’s position within global capital markets.
“The numbers matter, but what they represent matters more. Foreign investment is growing alongside financial services, technology and artificial intelligence, which indicates that capital is increasingly being deployed into businesses and sectors with long-term growth potential.”
According to UN Trade and Development’s World Investment Report 2026, FDI inflows into the UAE rose 6% in 2025, making it the world’s ninth-largest recipient of foreign direct investment.
The country also retained its position as the world’s second-largest destination for greenfield FDI projects for a third consecutive year, recording 1,562 announced projects.
Dubai’s financial sector has expanded alongside those investment flows. Dubai International Financial Centre reported 10,018 active registered companies in the first half of 2026, a 30% increase year on year. The number of regulated financial firms reached 1,134, up 16%.
Some of the fastest growth is coming from newer areas of the financial economy. DIFC recorded 1,933 companies operating across artificial intelligence, FinTech and innovation, 39% more than a year earlier.
Investment in AI infrastructure is accelerating elsewhere in the UAE. In Abu Dhabi, Stargate UAE is planned as a one-gigawatt AI infrastructure cluster, with its first 200 megawatts expected to become operational in 2026. OpenAI announced the project in May 2025 as the first international deployment of Stargate, in partnership with G42 and other global technology companies.
The expansion comes as the UAE pursues significantly higher investment targets. Under the National Investment Strategy 2031, approved by the UAE Cabinet in March 2025, annual FDI inflows are targeted to reach AED 240 billion, while the country aims to grow its total FDI stock to AED 2.2 trillion.
A National Investment Fund with initial capital of AED 36.7 billion was subsequently approved by the Cabinet in November 2025 to support those ambitions and attract further international investment.
Rashid said the changing landscape is also reshaping what determines the competitiveness of a financial centre.
“Competition is no longer only about where it is easiest to establish a business. Investors are looking at the entire ecosystem: regulation, technology, talent and access to markets. The financial centres that can bring those elements together will be in a much stronger position to attract global capital.”
Dubai is targeting a place among the world’s top four financial centres by 2033 under the Dubai Economic Agenda D33. Its move to seventh place brings that target closer, while record investment flows and continued growth in financial and technology businesses are strengthening the UAE’s position in the competition for global capital.
