Robinhood Wins DFSA Authorisation to Base Middle East Hub in Dubai

Robinhood has received authorisation from the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) to introduce its retail investing platform in the Middle East from the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), with the DIFC set to become its regional headquarters. According to forextraders.com, the authorisation covers trading and custody across all 10 asset classes the regulator permits, with a product launch planned for 2027.

Contents

01

What the Licence Covers

02

Leadership and the Dubai Base

03

A Crowded Regional Market

What the Licence Covers

Robinhood said the DFSA authorisation allows it to offer access to trading and custody across all 10 DFSA-approved asset classes, naming equities, crypto, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and investment tokens among them. ETFs are baskets of securities that trade on an exchange, while investment tokens are digital representations of assets such as securities or funds.

The company described the authorisation as a key milestone in its international expansion. Its product suite is planned for 2027, which Robinhood said would give local investors expanded access to the global economy.

For Australian readers who trade foreign exchange, the detail worth noting is what the announcement does not list. Robinhood's statement names equities, crypto, ETFs and investment tokens, but does not name FX or contracts for difference (CFDs). CFDs are leveraged agreements that pay out based on the price movement of an underlying asset, and they are widely used by retail traders to speculate on currency pairs.

That leaves the 2027 launch as a plan rather than a confirmed product line-up. Robinhood's own announcement frames the expansion and the 2027 launch as forward-looking statements, which it said are based on current assumptions and subject to risks and uncertainties including regulatory developments and market demand. The company said readers should not rely on those statements as predictions of future events, and that they are made as of 22 October 2026.

Leadership and the Dubai Base

Robinhood's operations will be based in the DIFC and led by Salah Kaddoura, Senior Executive Officer and President of Robinhood MENA. The company said Kaddoura brings fintech and investment expertise from across the MENA region and will oversee an expanding local team.

Kaddoura said demand for modern, accessible financial tools across the region is immense. From what he described as the company's new home in Dubai's premier financial hub, he said Robinhood is looking forward to building its regional presence and expanding access to the global financial ecosystem for a new generation of investors.

Vlad Tenev, Chairman and CEO of Robinhood, said the DIFC is one of the world's most important financial hubs, and that the expansion brings the company closer to building a global platform that enables anyone, anywhere to own the highest quality financial assets.

Johann Kerbrat, SVP and GM of Robinhood Crypto and International, said the DIFC has quickly become one of the world's most dynamic centres for financial innovation, situated at the heart of a growing wave of retail investors across the MENA region. He said the company is excited to deliver modern, accessible financial tools to those investors.

Arif Amiri, Chief Executive Officer of the DIFC Authority, commenting on behalf of the DIFC, said Robinhood's decision to establish its regional headquarters there reinforces Dubai's position as a global hub for financial innovation and reflects growing demand for accessible, technology-driven investment services across the Middle East. He said the arrival of one of the world's most recognised retail investment platforms further strengthens the DIFC's ecosystem and reflects the calibre of international firms choosing Dubai as a base for regional expansion.

A Crowded Regional Market

Robinhood arrives in a busy market. The DIFC had 72 authorised brokerage firms at 31 March 2026, up from 49 in 2022, according to forextraders.com. Amiri said the move reflects the growing demand for accessible, technology-driven investment services across the Middle East.

Several rivals are already established. eToro took a full Abu Dhabi licence in November 2023 covering securities, derivatives and crypto. Interactive Brokers opened a DIFC office in 2024 and added Dubai- and Abu Dhabi-listed stocks in December 2025. Baraka, an app based in the DIFC, began offering Dubai Financial Market and Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange shares in September 2026, with dirham funding and US stocks. Revolut received in-principle approval from the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority in July 2026 for broker-dealer and exchange services, subject to final approval. XTB moved up to Category 1 and 2 licences from the CMA, under a framework that lets brokers market to retail clients in all seven emirates.

For retail FX and CFD brokers, the region remains small. MENA accounted for 4.1 per cent of organic visits to their websites in the third quarter of 2026, against 42 per cent for Europe, forextraders.com reported. Organic visits are those arriving through unpaid search results rather than advertising.

On that reading, the authorisation is a foothold rather than a product for brokers in the region. Nothing published so far says whether FX or CFDs form part of what Robinhood brings in 2027, so Australian traders watching for a new leveraged currency competitor have no confirmed offering to assess yet.

Robinhood Markets, Inc. trades on NASDAQ under the ticker HOOD and describes itself as offering retail brokerage, crypto, advisory, digital banking services and private markets access. The company pointed readers to the risk factors section of its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 30 June 2026, and to its other filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, for more on the risks that could affect its business.

Forex and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly because of leverage. Most retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs, and traders should consider whether they understand how these products work and whether they can afford to take that risk.

Finally, WikiFX would like to remind everyone that before using any US stock, futures, or forex brokers, remember to check the platform's regulatory information, trading environment, field inspection reports, user reviews, and overall rating on the WikiFX App. This will help you effectively avoid problematic scam platforms and rogue brokers, safeguarding your capital.