The UAE is a ‘hugely important economy’ for UK, says minister

The UK is working to strengthen its trade and investment partnership with the UAE – including seeking more dual listings on the London Stock Exchange, according to Emma Reynolds, UK’s Economic Secretary to the Treasury.

Dual listings on the UAE stock markets and London Stock Exchange have happened in the past, and Reynolds said, “We would like it to happen more in the future”.

After the two nations signed an MoU [memorandum of understanding] on financial services in 2023, Reynolds has been keen to establish “concrete follow-up steps” – from progressing dual listing to collaborating on open banking, FinTech and sustainable finance.

“We are very confident that the UK has a leading international financial centre, second only to New York”, The Minister said, “And we’re focused on going from strength to strength. We’ll do that within an international framework, with partners here in the Gulf.”

Trade and investment ties between the two nations continue to grow, with the majority of the UK firms in the region choosing the UAE to set up their headquarters and operate in the wider region.

Some of the UAE’s investments in the UK include DP World’s £2.7 billion ($3.39 billion) investment in Southampton Port, London Gateway and P&O Ferries as well as Abu Dhabi’s clean energy company Masdar’s £4 billion investment in UK renewable energy.

“The trade between our two countries has always been very healthy and we would like to develop that further,” Reynolds added.