Dubai International Financial Center to strengthen ties with Indian businesses

A high-level delegation from the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC) is finalizing plans for a trip to Mumbai to pitch the DIFC as the ideal gateway for Indian investors interested in the region.

Representatives from the DIFC -- Dubai’s financial free zone which provides a platform for business and financial institutions to make connections with emerging markets -- will meet with business leaders and representatives from Indian banks, law firms, wealth and asset managers from Aug. 24 to 27.

The delegation will bring the message that the DIFC is where Indian investors should look to start doing business in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia -- a region estimated to be worth $7.9 trillion in annual trade.

The trade mission comes on the heels of moves to bolster economic ties between India and the UAE, the Gulf nation’s third largest trading partner. It follows a historic visit by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the first official visit by a serving Indian prime minister since Indira Gandhi came to the UAE in 1981.

“Dubai needs little introduction to India,” Arif Amiri, deputy chief executive officer of the DIFC Authority, said. “But the continued evolution of DIFC is opening the door to new markets and fresh opportunities for the Indian economy and its burgeoning private sector.”

Bilateral trade between India and the UAE was more than $59 billion last year, while Indian exports to the UAE, India’s top export destination, came in at $33 billion.