The Government of Dubai Media Office (GDMO) has launched a new International Media Briefing series, offering leading global media a closer look at the vision, ideas and initiatives shaping Dubai’s future through conversations with the leaders driving the development of vital sectors.
The first session in the series featured Hamed Ali, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Financial Market (DFM) and Nasdaq Dubai, who met with representatives of international media for an in-depth discussion on the transformation of Dubai’s capital markets and the long-term strategies underpinning the emirate’s rise as a global financial centre.
During the session, Hamed Ali reviewed the performance of both DFM, the emirate’s main equity exchange, and Nasdaq Dubai, the international exchange specialising in global listings and fixed-income instruments – two separate exchanges, each serving a distinct base of issuers.
Mona Ghanem Al Marri, Vice Chairperson and Managing Director of the Dubai Media Council and Director General of the Government of Dubai Media Office, said: “The International Media Briefing series is designed to encourage thoughtful dialogue and provide deeper context around the themes shaping the next chapter of Dubai’s evolution. It creates an opportunity for international media to engage directly with the leaders driving the emirate’s development and to better understand the strategies behind its continued progress.”
During the briefing, Hamed Ali reflected on Dubai’s long-term approach to developing its capital markets, highlighting the role of regulatory innovation, strong market infrastructure and sustained investor confidence in supporting growth.
The discussion also explored Dubai’s efforts to broaden market participation and the importance of innovation and emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, in strengthening the competitiveness and resilience of the emirate’s financial markets.
Hamed Ali highlighted the remarkable transformation of Dubai’s capital markets, noting that the DFM’s market capitalisation has surpassed AED1 trillion, representing 191% growth since 2020. The market’s robust performance was further reflected in the DFM General Index’s 17.2% growth in 2025, with average daily trading value exceeding AED1 billion.
Over the past four years, DFM has facilitated AED47 billion in capital raising through 12 initial public offerings, attracting AED1.3 trillion in investor demand and welcoming more than 465,000 new investors.
Hamed Ali also highlighted Arena, DFM’s next-generation capital-raising platform, designed to strengthen Dubai’s private capital ecosystem and support SMEs and high-growth companies. The platform enables liquidity for private investors while connecting issuers with DFM’s base of more than 1.2 million investors, creating new pathways to growth. By broadening access to capital and strengthening connections between businesses and investors, Arena is helping accelerate the emergence of the next generation of high-growth companies and future unicorns.
Turning to Nasdaq Dubai, Hamed Ali said the exchange recorded 33 new fixed-income listings worth US$13.8 billion since the beginning of 2026, with international issuers accounting for 40%.
The total current outstanding value of sukuk listed on the exchange is US$98.6 billion, reinforcing Dubai’s position as a leading global centre for sukuk and debt capital markets. Hamed Ali also highlighted the success of the Sovereign Retail T-Sukuk Programme, the UAE’s first sovereign sukuk targeted at retail investors, whose inaugural issuance was upsized from AED50 million to AED100 million in response to investor demand.
The issuance was oversubscribed nine times, attracting AED445 million in subscription requests across 18,422 applications. The programme is now listed on Nasdaq Dubai and is trading on the secondary market.
He said: “Every initiative we pursue is guided by a long-term vision to build a deeper, more dynamic and more accessible capital market. Markets are built on confidence, and confidence is earned through transparency, innovation and consistent execution. Our role is to ensure Dubai continues to offer a platform where businesses can grow, investors can participate with confidence and capital can flow efficiently.”
Hend Fekri, Director of Strategic Media Relations at the Government of Dubai Media Office, said: “Through this initiative, we are creating a platform for international media to gain first-hand insight from the people leading Dubai’s key sectors. These conversations will foster lasting relationships and a richer understanding of Dubai’s development.”
The International Media Briefing series, which will continue throughout the year, forms part of GDMO’s efforts to strengthen engagement with international media by creating opportunities for informed conversations with senior government officials and industry leaders.
