In this Insight we provide a quick overview of the financial
introductions regime in "Onshore UAE" (i.e. outside the
financial free zones), and how it impacts the financial
institutions (FIs) which appoint local introducers (LIs) to refer
UAE clients to them.
The Securities and Commodities Authority (the
SCA) regulates "introductions" in
Onshore UAE under the SCA Promotions and Introductions
Regulations,1 which were introduced in 2017 (the
PIRs). Little has been written about the SCA's
introductions regime, to which only 2 articles of the PIRs are
dedicated out of a total of 21 articles.
Financial promotions and introductions are both regulated by the
SCA. Carrying on financial promotions requires an SCA license,
while making introductions only requires the SCA's
authorisation. The difference between an "SCA license"
and an "SCA authorisation" is not set out clearly in the
PIRs and the SCA provides no guidance on the topic. However, the
eligibility criteria,
