From Dubai to the World: How the UAE Is Reimagining Trade Infrastructure

Dubai has long been a hub for global commerce, but today its ambition reaches further: reshaping trade infrastructure by blending physical capacity with digital innovation. The United Arab Emirates is not only expanding its ports and airports but also introducing technologies that make them more responsive and connected. 

DP World reported a 20.4% revenue increase in the first half of 2025, with global container volumes rising 6.7% to 45.4 million TEUs, a sign of the scale at which the UAE is anchoring global trade flows. At the same time, the Central Bank of the UAE’s Digital Dirham, now linked to Project mBridge, shows how cross-border settlements can be reduced from days to minutes.

This growth is reflected in a series of key developments that highlight how the UAE is modernising both the movement of goods and the flow of capital.

Cross-Border Payments and Digital Currencies

The Central Bank of the UAE’s Digital Dirham, linked to Project mBridge, marks one of the most advanced real-world applications of multi-CBDC infrastructure. By enabling faster, cheaper, and more transparent cross-border settlements, the UAE is showing how digital currencies could transform the financial backbone of global trade. In 2025, Project mBridge entered a new phase in China, signalling the platform’s evolution and growing adoption by banks beyond the original founding central banks, a development that underscores its potential to reshape cross-border flows at scale.

Open Finance and API Ecosystems

Through its Financial Infrastructure Transformation programme, the UAE is advancing open finance frameworks and centralised API hubs. This move is designed to connect banks, fintechs, insurers, and customs authorities, paving the way for more seamless trade transactions and unlocking new financing options for corporates and SMEs. In July 2025, the Central Bank of the UAE and Presight launched a joint venture to deliver these platforms, covering open finance, CBDC infrastructure, instant payments, and API services, a step that signals how seriously the UAE is embedding digital infrastructure into its trade and finance ecosystem.

Regulation, Risk, and Compliance

Trade finance is increasingly shaped by evolving regulations and the fight against financial crime. The UAE is tightening its compliance frameworks, focusing on AML/CFT, trade-based money laundering, and sanctions alignment. In 2024, the UAE Cabinet approved a national AML/CFT strategy for 2024-2027, which emphasises emerging risks such as digital payments, trade-based money laundering, and stronger regulatory coordination. These measures not only build trust in the financial system but also position the UAE as a safe and transparent hub for global flows.

Technology and AI in Trade Finance

AI, blockchain, and data analytics are now central to the region’s trade finance innovation. From automating documentary credits to monitoring risk in real time, these technologies are reducing inefficiencies and enhancing decision-making across financial institutions and corporates alike. The UAE’s AI in the finance market is projected to grow from USD 67 million in 2023 to USD 514 million by 2032, highlighting the scale of investment and adoption expected in the years ahead.

Why It Matters

These initiatives are not unfolding in isolation. Together, they reflect a coordinated strategy to align physical infrastructure with digital systems, changing how goods, data, and capital move across global trade corridors. The UAE is positioning itself not only as a centre for commodities and shipping but also as a testing ground for the next generation of trade finance infrastructure.

The Global Trade Finance Expo on 19-20 November 2025 at the Shangri-La Hotel in Dubai, UAE, is where these conversations turn into action. Senior leaders from banking, logistics, and technology will be there to debate solutions, set priorities, and build partnerships.

If your organisation is developing the tools that enable faster cross-border payments, practical CBDC applications, open finance connectivity, or AI-powered compliance, this is your stage. The Expo gives you direct access to the decision-makers who are actively looking for solutions like yours.

Secure your place in shaping tomorrow’s trade finance ecosystem.

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• To register and access the agenda: https://bit.ly/3MKWlnS

By: Zinah Abdaki, Head of Marketing at QUBE Events