Chinese and UAE financial and trade authorities signed multiple cross-border investment agreements to strengthen bilateral capital flows. Key developments include an MoU between CSC Financial and the UAE Ministry of Investment, alongside two UAE central bank payment licenses granted to Ant International.
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.
Chinese direct investment in the UAE surpassed $12 billion in 2025 as tech firms like Alibaba Cloud expanded data center and AI services. Meanwhile, U.S. policies conditioning access to advanced AI chips on the removal of Chinese core network hardware require Gulf states to navigate conflicting technological relationships. In the UAE, active Chinese technology projects grew to 81 under the Digital Silk Road framework.
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