Government of Dubai Media Office: His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and President of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), issued today Directive No. (1) of 2018, reinstating DIFC Authority’s Board of Directors for a two-year term.

DIFC Authority’s Board of Directors is mandated to ensure that all the Centre’s activities, ranging from infrastructure development, financial management and client relations, are structured and implemented to serve the strategic vision of Dubai’s leadership. The reinstated board members continue to play a fundamental role in directing DIFC’s growth path as outlined in its 2024 strategy, which will see the Centre triple in size and will help maintain its position as the leading international financial centre for the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region.

In addition to his role as Governor of DIFC, His Excellency Essa Kazim continues as Chairman of DIFC Authority Board of Directors. He is joined on the Board by Hussain Al Qemzi, Hamad Buamim, Salem Al Sharhan, Rashid Saif Al Jarwan, Abdulla J M Kalban and Hesham Abdulla Al Qassim.

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About Dubai International Financial Centre

The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is one of the world’s top ten financial centres, and the leading financial hub for the Middle East, Africa and South Asia.  The Centre provides a world-class platform connecting the region’s markets with the economies of Europe, Asia and the Americas and facilitates growth in South-South trade and investment. An onshore, international financial centre, DIFC offers a stable, mature and secure base for financial institutions to develop their wholesale businesses.

The Centre offers all the elements found in the world’s most successful financial industry ecosystems, including an independent regulator and judicial system with a common-law framework, a global financial exchange, inspiring architecture, powerful, enabling support services and a vibrant business community. The infrastructure within the district features ultra-modern office space, retail outlets, cafes and restaurants, art galleries, residential apartments, public green areas and hotels.

Located midway between the global financial centres of New York, London in the West and Singapore, Hong Kong in the East, DIFC (GMT +4) fills a vital time-zone gap with a workday that bridges the market and business hours of financial centres in both Asia and North America.

In 2015, DIFC launched its 2024 growth strategy, a blueprint for the next decade of growth of the financial hub. This strategy aims to stimulate trade and investment flows along the South-South economic corridor encompassing the Middle East, Africa, Southern Asia and Latin America. 

Currently, 1,750 active registered companies operate from the Centre, with a combined workforce of 21,611 professionals.  DIFC continues to pursue expansion into new services and sectors within the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region, an area comprising over 72 countries with an approximate population of 3 billion and nominal GDP of US$7.4 trillion.

For further information, please visit our website: difc.ae, or follow us on Twitter @DIFC.

© Press Release 2018