Dubai’s DMCC, the Government of Dubai Authority on commodities trade and enterprise, has had a record-breaking Q1 2023 with 708 new companies joining the business district, marking the best Q1 performance since its launch in 2002. The increase represents an 8.4% YoY increase and an average annual increase of 13.7% over the past five years. Ahmed Bin Sulayem, the executive chairman and CEO, attributed the success to Dubai’s strong local macroeconomic conditions and the ease of doing business within DMCC, which contributes roughly 10% to Dubai’s GDP. Over 90% of DMCC’s registered companies come from outside the UAE, demonstrating Dubai’s status as a prime destination for investment. Sulayem stated that DMCC’s key priority is to facilitate the success of global companies and support Dubai’s Economic Agenda D33, with the goal of doubling the size of Dubai’s economy in the next decade. DMCC’s traditional core markets continued to outperform previous quarters, with strong numbers of businesses from India, the UK, Germany, China, and France expanding their global operations in the free zone.
The DMCC Crypto Centre and the recent launch of the DMCC Gaming Centre in December 2022 significantly supported DMCC’s long-term growth strategy. Additionally, DMCC began sales of its new SO/ Uptown Dubai Residences in Uptown Tower, announced a range of new upcoming developments in its Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT) district, and new key partnerships that bolster the comprehensive crypto and Web3 ecosystem offered by the DMCC Crypto Centre. DMCC also achieved its “best-ever” year for new member company registrations, attracting 3,049 new businesses to Dubai in 2022, marking a YoY increase of 23%.