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Why are billionaires flocking to Dubai?

2025-08-25 15:05:22Biznes SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
Why are billionaires flocking to Dubai?
Dubai

The wealthy are flocking to Dubai in record numbers, drawn by the desert city's zero-income tax policy and easygoing, luxurious lifestyle that has become harder to find elsewhere.

The United Arab Emirates, and Dubai in particular, have long welcomed wealthy people from neighboring countries, and people who help millionaires relocate there told AFP that there is a growing number of Westerners flocking to Dubai.

Consulting firm Henley & Partners predicts that the United Arab Emirates will attract an unprecedented number of 9,800 millionaires this year - more than anywhere else in the world.

The United Arab Emirates has presented itself as a magnet for the wealthy, offering economic and political stability with very low crime rates, a good business environment and even easier access to luxury.

The Gulf state's golden visa scheme, designed to attract wealthy or skilled foreigners, allows individuals to obtain a residence permit for a 10-year period.

Mike Coady, head of Skybound Wealth Management, an advisory firm for wealthy individuals, said some of his clients "feel like success has become a burden in their home countries."

"They pay more taxes, are investigated more and are offered less," he said, but added that in Dubai, "wealth is not hidden, it is normalized."

"In London, my clients talk quietly about their wealth. In Dubai, they can live freely."

As a top destination for celebrity influencers, Dubai has become synonymous with exaggerated displays of wealth.

The city is home to an extraordinary shopping mall, which has an indoor ski slope, the tallest building in the world and Palma – an artificial island filled with five-star hotels.

The rapid development and destination for the wealthy from around the world has faced criticism for extreme inequality, while an army of low-wage migrant workers are the mainstay of the economy.

"Very little bureaucracy"

Coady said his clients who are relocating were mostly professionals in their 30s and 40s, including tech company founders, business owners, consultants and fund managers.

One of them is a 42-year-old founder of a software company who, fearing capital gains tax on the sale of his company, moved from Britain to the United Arab Emirates – which has now become the world's leading exporter of millionaires.

Some are being forced to leave because of a stricter tax policy for people with "non-resident" status - those who live in Britain but have their permanent residence abroad and who had benefited from not paying taxes on income earned abroad.

Along with other changes expected to occur in tax policies and inheritance rules, as well as what Coady called “growing rhetoric against wealth,” Britain is expected to lose a record 16,500 millionaires this year, according to Henley & Partners.

The most famous person to leave this year, billionaire John Fredriksen, told Norwegian media that he moved to the United Arab Emirates because "Britain has become hell."

Speaking on the podcast “Building Wealth With No Borders” about his move to Dubai, Max Maxwell, CEO of Paddco Real Estate, said: “We are all pursuing a lifestyle, whatever that means for each of us.”

The businessman explained that after leaving the United States for the United Arab Emirates, he discovered that his family could enjoy "a better lifestyle than where we were before" for the same amount of money.

Philippe Amarante, of Henley & Partners in Dubai, said the wealthy are looking to preserve their wealth and lifestyle, as well as the ability to do business with "very little bureaucracy".

And the United Arab Emirates has positioned itself "with a very clear and simple message: we are open for business," Amarante said.

For Coady's clients, "the United Arab Emirates fits like a glove," he said.

“Buy a whole building”

However, the influx of foreign wealth has not been without controversy. Authorities in the Emirates have tightened anti-money laundering controls after the UAE was placed on a global “grey list” in 2022 due to concerns over shady financial transactions and an influx of money from Russia, while Russians flocked to the Gulf in droves after the invasion of Ukraine to escape crippling sanctions at home.

Wealthy people from around the world are now taking their families, businesses and private offices with them to Dubai, "something that is new," said Faisal Durrani, head of Middle East research at real estate advisory firm Knight Frank.

Dubai is now one of the top 20 cities in the world with the most millionaires, with 81,200 of them and 20 billionaires, according to Henley & Partners.

Surpassing New York and London combined, 435 homes worth $10 million or more were sold in Dubai last year - making it the largest market for luxury, relatively affordable properties in the UAE compared to the West, Durrani said.

He said buyers from countries like Monaco and Switzerland came to the company looking for, for example, a $100 million apartment in Dubai.

"But in Dubai for that price, you can buy an entire building."/ AFP


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