There’s a pattern that tends to repeat itself in global finance, and it’s one that experienced investors know well: when the world gets nervous, certain destinations don’t just hold their ground, they grow more compelling. The Gulf region, and the UAE in particular, is one of those places.

There’s a decent chance that the last app you opened, the last software your company renewed, or the last AI tool your team demoed is, at least in part, backed by capital from the Gulf. You probably didn’t notice. That’s partly by design, and partly because the story has not yet been told clearly enough.

Let’s start with an uncomfortable truth. In 2025, nearly 246,000 tech workers lost their jobs as companies restructured around artificial intelligence and cost efficiency. By early 2026, the pace had accelerated – tech sector job losses in the first six weeks of the year were already tracking to surpass 270,000 by the end of the

In the years following Brexit, a growing number of British nationals based in Dubai have taken a strategic step to restore their European mobility: applying for Irish citizenship by descent. At Knightsbridge Group, working alongside our specialist Irish legal partners, we have seen a significant increase in successful applications from UK citizens with Irish parents or grandparents -

For decades, the UAE’s tax proposition was simple: zero corporate tax, a free zone ecosystem that made structuring relatively frictionless, and a regulatory environment that kept pace with business. It was, by most measures, a compelling offer. In January 2025, however, the UAE introduced a Domestic Minimum Top-up Tax (DMTT). This was the local implementation

Dubai has become one of the most active business environments globally, with companies setting up, expanding, and entering new markets at speed. The infrastructure supporting that growth – regulatory, financial, and physical – has kept pace accordingly. Workspace is part of that picture, and how businesses choose to occupy it is shifting. flowork was established

Living in Dubai has been one of the great chapters of my family's life. The UAE gave us something genuinely rare: a safe, open environment to raise children, build a career, and put down real roots in a community that, despite drawing people from every corner of the world, feels remarkably cohesive. For all the

The joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran that began on 28 February 2026 reshaped the operational environment for Gulf financial centres overnight. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s assassination in the opening wave, followed by Iran’s retaliatory strikes across the region, created conditions where geopolitical headlines move currencies within hours. Dubai’s banks and capital markets operate in

The UAE has been moving fast on technology, with AI strategies, smart government, and digital infrastructure across almost every sector. The humble invoice has not been left out of that push.

Just over a year ago, the World Economic Forum described the GCC as experiencing a golden age for startups and entrepreneurs. It is a striking claim, and the numbers bear it out.