Dubai: The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) on Wednesday reported 27.6 per cent year-on-year growth in the number of new companies incorporated as 309 new entities joined the global financial hub last year.

The size of the total workforce employed within DIFC also grew to 19,808, an 11 per cent increase compared with last year.

Despite the challenging global and regional economic environment, the DIFC continued to attract financial institutions from around the world last year and senior officials said the financial centre’s client portfolio continues to expand, adding that the centre has a strong pipeline on institutions eager to join.

“With Middle East, Africa & South Asia (MEASA), expected to account for a substantial share of global economic growth over the next decade, [the] DIFC is well positioned to benefit from the trade and investment flows entering the region and from the emergence of the South-South economic corridor linking Asia, Africa and Latin America,” said Eisa Kazim, Governor of the Dubai International Financial Centre.

Currently the DIFC has 1,445 active registered firms, compared with 1,225 firms at the end of 2014 — an increase of 18 per cent and also the highest number since the DIFC’s inception.

Last year, the number of active registered firms in the financial services and non-financial services sectors grew 13 per cent and 22 per cent, respectively, compared with 2014.

Among active registered firms, financial services account for 408 firms while the non-financial services sector is made up of 835 companies

The DIFC continued to expand its retail offering in 2015, adding 18 retailers (a year-on-year increase of 11 per cent).

An additional 335,600 square feet of office space was leased, 19 per cent more new office space than in 2014.

South-South Corridor

In line with its 2024 growth strategy the DIFC plans to enhance access to the South-South trade and investment corridor.

Currently all the big four Chinese banks with Category-1 licences operate from the DIFC. While these banks have seen significant balance sheet growth in the region, the DIFC officials expect more Chinese, Indian and other Asian banks to join the DIFC in the year ahead.

Beyond the key countries located within the South-South corridor, DIFC continued in its efforts to build and maintain relationships with stakeholders across the globe.

Delegations from the centre visited a number of markets over the course of the year, including London, New York, Singapore, Frankfurt and most of the GCC countries to name a few.

The DIFC’s client portfolio continues to reflect a wide geographic spread, with both developed and developing markets well represented. Of DIFC’s 408 financial firms, a third (34 per cent) are from the Middle East, while 18 per cent are from Europe, 15 per cent from the United Kingdom, 13 per cent from North America, 11 per cent from Asia, while the remaining 10 per cent are from the rest of the world.

Among the new financial companies setting up operations in 2015, the DIFC welcomed Lloyd’s of London in March, the global leader in specialist insurance and reinsurance.

BankMed, one of Lebanon’s fastest-growing banks, also officially opened in March, the first Middle East and North Africa (Mena)-based financial institution to receive a Category-1 licence at DIFC.

Bae, Kim and Lee, the first South Korean law firm joined the DIFC in April, while Shinhan Bank, one of South Korea’s largest banks, opened in December.

Also joining DIFC in September 2015 was the centre’s first bank from the Philippines, BDO Unibank. BDO Unibank was the first Filipino bank to set up at the DIFC, establishing a presence in September.

Furthermore, Access Bank UK, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Access Bank Plc, a Nigerian Stock Exchange-listed company, launched at the DIFC in October.