This is the second installment of DSD's DIFC/ADGM Ledger. Installment one ran on ADGM's Q1 2026 disclosure, the most recent figures available at the time. One week on, the two centres have not moved in lockstep. DIFC has since published a fresh H1 2026 update showing growth across nearly every category it tracks. ADGM has not. Its most recently published figures remain the same Q1 2026 numbers we used last time. That gap is itself the story this week, and we are flagging it rather than papering over it with old numbers dressed up as new.
The Ledger: Latest Published Figures, Side by Side
Figures below are each centre's most recently published disclosure as of this Ledger's publication date. Note the different reporting periods: DIFC's figures are H1 2026 (through 30 June 2026), while ADGM's remain Q1 2026 (through 31 March 2026). We are not blending these into a single combined total, since doing so would overstate the comparison.
DIFC's H1 2026 disclosure and the DFSA's Annual Report 2025 cover overlapping ground on regulated financial firms, at two different points in time, which lets us calculate a genuine trend rather than just report a single snapshot. The DFSA's Annual Report 2025 put DIFC's regulated entity count at 1,050 as of 31 December 2025, after 182 new firms joined during the year, a 16 percent increase on 2024. DIFC's own H1 2026 disclosure puts the regulated financial services firm count at 1,134 as of 30 June 2026. That is a net increase of roughly 84 regulated firms in six months, a usable half-year velocity figure for DIFC's regulated segment specifically, distinct from its broader active company count.
What Changed at DIFC
DIFC's H1 2026 disclosure, published 28 July 2026, put active registered companies at 10,018, the first time the centre has crossed 10,000, up 30 percent year on year after 2,318 new active firms joined over the prior 12 months. Growth was broad rather than concentrated in one segment. Regulated financial services firms rose 16 percent to 1,134. Family-related entities climbed 36 percent to 1,408, and foundations, the fastest-growing category in the release, jumped 67 percent to 1,409. The AI, FinTech, and innovation segment grew 39 percent to 1,933 firms, after the DIFC Innovation Hub welcomed 361 new companies during the half. DIFC also disclosed that its 600,000 square foot DIFC Square development was fully leased before completion, a demand signal for the centre's next phase of physical capacity, DIFC Zabeel District.
The regulator's own numbers reinforce the trend. The DFSA's Annual Report 2025, published 25 June 2026, described 2025 as DIFC's third consecutive year of double-digit growth, with 182 new regulated firms licensed during the year, up 16 percent on 2024. The same report noted that Dubai advanced to seventh place globally in the Global Financial Centres Index 39, published in March 2026, its highest-ever ranking. The DFSA also reported that 52 percent of DIFC firms actively used AI in 2025, up from 33 percent in 2024, with generative AI adoption up 166 percent year on year.
Why ADGM's Side of the Ledger Hasn't Moved
ADGM's most recently published figures remain those from its Q1 2026 disclosure, issued 18 May 2026: 13,353 active licences, a 57 percent jump in assets under management, and 961 new licences issued during the quarter. Firms establishing operations in ADGM during 2026 collectively represented more than 4.4 trillion dollars in global assets under management at that point. ADGM's H1 2025 report, by comparison, was published in August 2025, roughly six weeks after the half-year closed. As of this Ledger's publication date, no equivalent H1 2026 report has been issued. That is not unusual timing for ADGM historically, but it does mean this installment cannot show a genuine ADGM trend line the way it can for DIFC. We will update this tracker with ADGM's H1 2026 figures the moment they are published.
What This Means for Founders and Investors
- If you are comparing DIFC and ADGM for incorporation: DIFC's growth is currently more broad-based across company types, while ADGM's Q1 2026 figures show stronger asset management and AUM momentum specifically. The comparison will sharpen once ADGM's H1 2026 numbers land.
- If your business touches AI or fintech: DIFC's 39 percent growth in AI, FinTech, and innovation firms, and the DFSA's finding that AI adoption jumped from 33 percent to 52 percent of DIFC firms in a single year, both point to a centre actively courting this segment.
- If you are structuring a family office or foundation: DIFC's 67 percent year on year growth in foundations is the single fastest-growing category in this Ledger, worth watching against ADGM's comparable figures once published.
- If you rely on these figures for external reporting, always cite the reporting period alongside the number. DIFC's H1 2026 figures and ADGM's Q1 2026 figures are not directly comparable snapshots, and blending them without noting the gap would misstate the comparison.
Read Also
