Dubai Investors and Business Owners Are Doubling Down on the UAE

As global markets grapple with volatility, proprietary data from strategic advisory firm GCG Structuring reveals a striking market signal of zero exits.

Peter Ivantsov, Founder & Managing Partner of GCG Structuring, says that of 200+ active investor and business owner clients under advisory, precisely zero have liquidated operations or departed the jurisdiction. All maintain active UAE commitments, with the majority accelerating return timelines and expansion plans.

The data from his company provides a ground-level view that complements higher-level economic indicators. 

“The retention metric is only part of the story. What is important is who didn’t leave,” Ivantsov says. “These are sophisticated global investors with many options. Their continued presence in the UAE is part of a long-term, thoughtful investment programme – not an arbitrary market comparison.”

Recent disruptions highlight the market’s durability. Financial institutions quickly returned to full service after the AWS outage, demonstrating a degree of operational flexibility characteristic of more adaptive economies. The response of the United Arab Emirates to COVID-19 also established an international benchmark for resilience, as the country’s systems and leadership were able to absorb a major shock without lasting disruption to institutions.

“COVID revealed underlying strengths,” says Ivantsov. “Those strengths are being tested right now. Businesses that restructured in 2020–2021 are now performing better than later entrants who underestimated the complexity of the market.”

As proof, he offers three non-fiscal factors that enhance investor retention.

The first is trust. The consistent enforcement of contracts and regulatory reliability acts to lower counterparty risk in long-term relationships.

Second, he points to resonance, where capital built over time endures through changing circumstances, and increasingly shapes how capital is allocated.

Third, confidence in systemic stability, albeit amid temporary volatility, remains a source of anchor for investment.

“These factors reveal to some extent why capital stays put amid outside uncertainty,” Ivantsov says. “They cannot be duplicated with policy incentives alone. They’re forged over time through performance, especially under pressure. Data on new market entrants is consistent with this trend. As a result, GCG Structuring is receiving fewer speculative enquiries in favour of a greater proportion of investors who have already performed their due diligence and committed capital. The move to quality over volume bodes for a more selective and mature series of market entries in preference to momentum-driven flows.”