UAE: Abu Dhabi

While the government plays a key role in supporting residents in need, several charitable organisations are also part of the landscape of the emirate and the larger UAE. Some of these groups are explicitly focused on domestic issues, while others look further afield and financially support development projects abroad.

In late January 2012 the Abu Dhabi Technology Development Committee (TDC) launched a new initiative with the goal of stoking innovation and knowledge-based economic development. Known as Takamul – which means “integration” in Arabic – the programme offers financial support and legal guidance to local start-ups, entrepreneurs, and other...

A significant proportion of the UAE’s Islamic financial services (IFS) sector is based in Abu Dhabi. Home to two of the three largest Islamic banks in the country, three of its most successful takaful (Islamic insurance) firms and a multitude of sharia-compliant investment funds, the emirate is also emerging as an important regional centre of...

Five major financial institutions dominate the Abu Dhabi banking sector, which has expanded significantly over the recent decades.

As the home of the federal seat and the location of the great majority of the UAE’s oil reserves, Abu Dhabi has played a key role in developing the country’s reputation as a major political and economic player. While trade and other economic ties have been central to the UAE’s foreign policy for years, over the past decade energy policy, in...

The government’s strong fiscal balance means Abu Dhabi has only needed to issue a limited number of sovereign bonds. When the emirate has sold government securities at all, it has mainly been for the purpose of establishing a yield curve for the private sector.