(Yicai) Jan. 22 -- The European elite is changing Canary Wharf in London for the Palm Jumeirah in Dubai, taking with them tens of billions amid increasing taxes in Europe, according to the chief executive officer of leading international real-estate technology firm Juwai IQI.

"Europe is raising taxes and red tape on wealth, while Dubai is rolling out the red carpet," Kashif Ansari, who is also co-founder of Juwai IQI, told Yicai. The city is attracting Europeans in record numbers, with the United Kingdom losing thousands of millionaires, while France, Spain, and Germany all face net outflows, he noted.

The United Arab Emirates likely welcomed 9,800 high-net-worth individuals last year, who brought with them an estimated USD63 billion of investable assets, according to a recent report from the largest globally integrated residence and citizenship advisory firm Henley & Partners.

Ancova Capital has observed a steady increase in wealthy European individuals relocating to Dubai over the past three years, with momentum accelerating in 2024 and last year, Enis Sljivo, managing partner at the cross-border asset manager, told Yicai. Key drivers included renewed wealth and inheritance tax talks in France, the UK, and others, stricter exit tax enforcement, and the broader impact of global minimum tax rules that reduced flexibility for internationally minded entrepreneurs, he added.

"We are seeing an increase in Dubai residency and citizenship enquiries, particularly as a London-based firm," Micha-Rose Emmett, chief executive officer at immigration investment consultancy firm CS Global Partners, said to Yicai. "A growing number of British citizens are exploring a move to Dubai, largely in response to the shifting political and financial landscape in the UK."

"It's worth noting that obtaining full citizenship in the UAE remains almost impossible. This is why alternative citizenship-by-investment programmes continue to be in strong demand among high-net-worth individuals," Emmett said. "We continue to see significant interest in European destinations such as Portugal and Greece, as well as Caribbean jurisdictions including St. Kitts and Nevis and Dominica."

"Among the European clients advised by Ancova over the past three to five years, the most represented countries have been France, the UK, Germany, Italy, and parts of Scandinavia," Sljivo noted. "The dominant industries include tech, consulting, finance, e-commerce, and family-owned industrial businesses.

"There has been a noticeable rise in younger founders and second-generation business owners," Sljivo added. "Around two-thirds continue to manage their European businesses remotely after relocating, while the remaining third establish holding or operating structures in Dubai, using it as a regional or global base."

"At Juwai IQI's recently expanded Dubai office, we've seen Europeans snapping up off-plan properties with easy 10 percent to 20 percent down payments and interest-free-style financing," Ansari said. "Dubai's Golden Visa scheme is an attraction for buyers in that income bracket.

"Dubai issued around 158,000 Golden Visas in 2023 and made it even more accessible in 2024," Ansari pointed out. "Hedge funds are doubling here, AI is projected to add USD96 billion in UAE value by 2030, and Dubai's tokenization push opens prime investments to everyday buyers with stakes as low as AED2,000 (USD544.59)."

Editor: Martin Kadiev