UAE Capital Market Authority Outlines 2027 Agenda as Foreign Trading Hits 49%

The UAE is preparing for a new phase of capital market expansion focused on asset tokenisation, artificial intelligence, and alternative trading systems, according to Waleed Saeed Al Awadhi, Chief Executive Officer of the UAE Capital Market Authority (CMA), in an interview with Arabian Business. Al Awadhi stated that the CMA is working to expand market-based financing, attract institutional capital, and introduce new investment vehicles under a reinforced supervisory framework.

International investors generated 49 percent of total trading across the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) and the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) during the first nine months of 2026, according to the CMA. Total traded turnover across both bourses reached AED 408 billion during the period, with their combined market capitalisation standing at AED 3.7 trillion at the close of September. General indices on both exchanges finished September above prior-year levels, accompanied by easing volatility during the third quarter.

Growth in the institutional ecosystem saw the number of CMA-licensed companies rise 43 percent year-on-year in the first nine months of 2026. The authority issued 69 new operating licences during the period—an 11 percent increase over the 62 licences granted in the equivalent period of 2025—with third-quarter licence issuance accelerating 81 percent year-on-year.

This market expansion coincides with the rollout of Federal Decree-Laws No. 32 and 33 of 2025, which entered into force on January 1, 2026, bolstering the CMA's supervisory autonomy, enforcement authority, and investor safeguard mandates. Financial penalties issued by the regulator increased 23 percent year-on-year to AED 12.9 million in the first nine months of 2026, while client refunds reached approximately AED 1.2 billion compared to AED 8 million in the corresponding period of 2025.

Looking toward 2027, the CMA plans to develop regulatory pathways for alternative trading systems, virtual assets, and the tokenisation of securities and commodity contracts to unlock fresh capital formation mechanisms, while integrating artificial intelligence into market oversight and public regulatory services.