Abu Dhabi Global Market

Overview

ADGM is a financial free zone on Al Maryah Island with its own legal system, its own courts and its own financial regulator, the FSRA. English common law applies directly, not by analogy.

Why that matters commercially

An institutional counterparty asked to face a UAE entity will ask what law governs and which court hears a dispute. In ADGM both answers are ones its counsel already understands. For institutional custody, prime brokerage and fund structures, that is frequently the deciding factor.

What it is good for

Institutional exchanges and multilateral trading facilities. Custody. Fund management with digital-asset exposure. DLT Foundations for token projects and decentralised governance.

What it demands

Real substance on Al Maryah Island — premises and people, not a registered address. Category-based capital. Controlled function holders who are genuinely in the business. A technology and custody file that will be read closely.

ADGM is not the cheap option and does not try to be.

Courts

The ADGM Courts apply English common law and are a genuine dispute-resolution forum, not a formality. For contracts with international counterparties this is an asset in itself.

How we help

We choose the jurisdiction on the business the client actually has — the customers, the counterparties, the activities and the tax position — and we say plainly when a cheaper jurisdiction would serve just as well.