Banking, fintech, funds, capital markets and cross-border investment
Under Federal Tax Authority Decision No. 17 of 2026, UAE businesses can recover input VAT on six categories of employee expenses following rules that took effect on October 1. Eligible expenses include transport, accommodation, mobile services, and parking, subject to documented policies or contractual obligations. Taxable entities must retain compliance documentation for tax audits.
The UAE Financial Intelligence Unit and Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to coordinate anti-money laundering enforcement. The agreement establishes formal channels for exchanging supervisory data, intelligence, and regulatory insight on virtual asset service providers. It aims to strengthen compliance supervision across Dubai's mainland, free zones, and special development zones.
Chinese direct investment in the UAE surpassed $12 billion in 2025 as Chinese technology initiatives expanded across cloud computing and digital services. Concurrently, US export rules require Gulf nations to strip Chinese hardware from core networks to maintain access to advanced American AI semiconductors. UAE firms like G42 have removed Chinese equipment, balancing deepening Chinese commercial ties against American technological conditions.
Ant International and HSBC have expanded their collaboration to provide real-time treasury management services across the Middle East using HSBC's Tokenised Deposit Service. The companies completed pilot transactions connecting the UAE and Hong Kong for domestic dirham and cross-border US dollar transfers. Ant International is HSBC's first corporate client in the Middle East to utilise the tokenised deposit infrastructure.
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