Mirae Asset Opens a DIFC Office: Korean Group With USD 800 Billion (AED 2.94 Trillion) Under Management Gets a DFSA Category 3C Licence to Serve Gulf Institutions, Family Offices and the Indian Diaspora

2026-09-08

Mirae Asset Global Investments, the asset management arm of South Korea’s Mirae Asset Financial Group, announced on 7 September 2026 that it has opened an office in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), in Emirates Financial Towers, and that its new entity, Mirae Asset Investment Managers (DIFC) Limited, has been granted a Prudential Category 3C licence by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), firm reference F012649. The licence allows the firm to manage and distribute collective investment funds to institutional and professional clients across the GCC. The group manages more than USD 800 billion (AED 2.94 trillion) globally, and Mirae Asset Global Investments alone manages more than USD 400 billion (AED 1.47 trillion) across 22 markets. The Dubai office is aimed at GCC institutional investors, family offices, distribution partners and the Indian diaspora across the Middle East and East Africa, drawing on the group’s India operations. It joins 592 wealth and asset management firms among the 10,018 active companies registered in DIFC at the end of June 2026. This article sets out the verified facts of the announcement, what a Category 3C licence permits under the DFSA Rulebook, the DIFC numbers behind the decision, and what it means for investors and founders working in the UAE.

Mirae Asset in DIFC at a glance

Who Mirae Asset is

Mirae Asset Financial Group was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in South Korea. The release describes it as one of Asia’s leading independent financial services organisations, with more than USD 800 billion (AED 2.94 trillion) in assets under management and operations spanning asset management, wealth management, securities, investment banking, insurance and alternative investments. The company boilerplate dates the figure to 31 March 2026.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. is the group’s investment arm and, in the release’s words, one of Asia’s largest independent asset managers, with more than USD 400 billion (AED 1.47 trillion) under management and a network in 22 markets across Asia, the Americas, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. Its product range covers equities, fixed income, exchange-traded funds, multi-asset strategies, alternatives, private markets and thematic investments. For Dubai the group explicitly names its India business as the engine: Swarup Mohanty, Non-Executive Director of the DIFC entity, said the firm intends to bring “a comprehensive suite of India-focused and global investment strategies to investors in the region” by leveraging the expertise of its India operations alongside the group’s global capabilities.

What a DFSA Category 3C licence allows

DIFC has its own financial regulator, the DFSA, and every firm that carries on a financial service inside the Centre needs a DFSA licence in addition to its DIFC company registration. The DFSA sorts licensed firms into prudential categories that set the capital and reporting regime. Under Rule 1.3.5 of the Prudential module (PIB) of the DFSA Rulebook, a firm is in Category 3C if its licence authorises one or more of the following: managing assets; managing a collective investment fund; providing custody other than for a fund and other than for crypto assets; managing a restricted profit sharing investment account; providing trust services as trustee of at least one express trust; or providing money services by issuing stored value, and it does not meet the criteria of Categories 1, 2, 3A, 3B or 5. In plain terms, Category 3C is the asset management category: it does not permit taking deposits or lending (Categories 1 and 2) or dealing in investments as principal (Category 2), and it is distinct from fund custody and trustee work (Category 3B).

The DFSA also sets a base capital requirement for each category in PIB Rule 3.6.2, the floor below which a firm’s capital may never fall. For Category 3C the base figure is USD 500,000 (AED 1.84 million), with two exceptions: USD 140,000 (AED 514,000) if the firm only manages assets, a restricted profit sharing account, a public fund or a credit fund, and USD 40,000 (AED 147,000) if it only manages collective investment funds that are neither public nor credit funds. Base capital is a floor, not the whole answer: a firm must also hold the expenditure-based capital minimum set in PIB, so the real figure depends on the firm’s annual costs and on the activities listed on its licence. The DFSA public register shows the exact financial services each firm holds; the release describes Mirae Asset’s permission as managing and distributing collective investment funds to institutional and professional clients.

Who may buy the funds is defined separately, in the DFSA Conduct of Business module. A Category 3C firm serving “institutional and professional clients” is not a retail shop: an individual is treated as an assessed Professional Client only after the firm checks experience and confirms net assets of at least USD 1 million (AED 3.67 million), a threshold the DFSA raised from USD 500,000 on 1 April 2016. Retail investors in the UAE typically reach such products through banks and distribution platforms operating under their own licences, which is why the release stresses “existing distribution partners”.

Who the office is for: Gulf institutions, family offices and 4.3 million Indians

The release names four client groups. First, GCC-based institutional investors: the sovereign funds, pension schemes, insurers and banks that make the Gulf one of the largest pools of investable capital in the world. Second, family offices: DIFC reported 1,408 family-related entities at the end of June 2026, up 36% in a year, and 1,409 foundations, up 67%, and an AGBI analysis covered on this site on 7 September expects Gulf family businesses to hand about USD 1 trillion (AED 3.67 trillion) to the next generation within a decade. Third, existing distribution partners, the banks and platforms that already sell Mirae Asset funds in the region. Fourth, and most distinctive, the Indian diaspora across the Middle East and East Africa. The Embassy of India in Abu Dhabi estimates the resident Indian community in the UAE at 4.3 million people on 2024 data, roughly 35% of the country’s population, and the group’s India operations, which Mohanty singled out, are the base for the India-focused strategies the office will offer.

Young Kim, President and Chief Global Officer of Mirae Asset Global Investments, said: “Opening our DIFC office marks an important milestone in Mirae Asset’s regional growth strategy and reinforces our enduring commitment to the Middle East. We have strong confidence in Dubai’s vision, business-friendly environment, and role as a leading international financial centre.” He added that the firm expects to “accelerate business growth, expand our distribution capabilities, and offer innovative investment products that help our clients access opportunities across global markets”.

Why DIFC: 592 asset managers and 10,018 companies

Arif Amiri, Chief Executive Officer of DIFC Authority, said: “Mirae Asset’s decision to establish a regulated presence in DIFC endorses Dubai’s position as a global centre for wealth and asset management, and of the opportunities the region presents to leading international investment firms.” The numbers he is pointing to come from DIFC’s first-half results of 28 July 2026, which we analysed when the Centre crossed 10,000 companies: 10,018 active registered companies, up 30% year on year with 2,318 added in 12 months; 1,134 regulated financial firms, up 16%; 592 wealth and asset management firms, which DIFC’s own boilerplate says include more than 100 hedge fund managers; 165 insurance and reinsurance companies; 1,933 AI, FinTech and innovation firms; and 50,200 professionals working in the district.

Mirae Asset is the latest in a run of global managers and banks choosing a regulated DIFC base in 2026. Blackstone announced its return to Dubai with a DIFC office in July; Standard Chartered launched institutional Bitcoin and Ether spot trading through DIFC in early September; and in the same week ICBC listed USD 713 million of green bonds on Nasdaq Dubai. The demand side is documented too: BlackRock’s regional outlook, covered here on 2 September, puts the GCC investment cycle to 2030 at USD 2.1 trillion (AED 7.71 trillion), with the UAE at its centre. A Korean manager with an India franchise fits the pattern: capital is being raised and deployed in the Gulf, and the managers want to sit in the same district as the allocators.

Korea and the UAE: the CEPA has been in force since 1 May 2026

The Korean arrival also sits on a fresh trade framework. The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between the UAE and the Republic of Korea was signed on 29 May 2024 and entered into force on 1 May 2026, according to the UAE Ministry of Economy and Tourism. It covers about 91.2% of tariff lines, with duties eliminated progressively over up to 10 years, and it contains dedicated provisions on financial services that commit both sides to regulatory transparency and non-discriminatory access. A DFSA licence is not granted under the CEPA and the agreement does not change DFSA rules, but it removes friction for Korean groups that combine trade, investment and financial activity in the Gulf, and Mirae Asset’s office opens four months after it took effect.

What it means for a business or investor in the UAE

For investors: one more regulated manager, with an Asian and Indian tilt. Professional clients and institutions in the GCC gain direct access to a manager whose product set is built around Korean, Indian and global strategies and ETFs, under DFSA conduct rules and DIFC courts. Before committing money, check the firm’s entry in the DFSA public register (reference F012649) for the exact financial services it holds, and ask how a given fund is domiciled and distributed: a fund managed from DIFC may be established in DIFC, in Korea, in Luxembourg or elsewhere, and the investor’s rights follow the fund’s own jurisdiction.

For founders of investment firms: the Category 3C path is defined and priced. The example shows the sequence: a DIFC company, a DFSA licence with the activities listed, and base capital of USD 500,000 (AED 1.84 million), or USD 140,000 (AED 514,000) for a firm limited to managing assets. A team that only advises or arranges deals fits Category 4 with USD 30,000 (AED 110,000) of base capital. The authorisation process is run by the DFSA and takes months rather than weeks; the corporate layer around it, the entity, the office lease, the bank account and the residence visas for the licensed individuals, has to be in place in the same window.

For family offices: the supply of managers in Dubai is growing faster than the structures to hold them. A family that wants to allocate to a DIFC manager still needs its own vehicle. DIFC opened its Prescribed Company regime to every applicant under the 2026 rules, foundations rose 67% in a year, and the same holding can sit in another UAE free zone or on the mainland if the family’s operating business is there. The choice of vehicle drives the bank account, the tax registration and the residency of the principals, so it comes before the allocation, not after.

How Atlant Capital can help

Atlant Capital works with founders, investors and families who need the corporate and residency layer around an investment decision in the UAE. We register companies on the mainland and in free zones, including holding and investment-holding structures and consultancy licences, open corporate and personal bank accounts at UAE banks, arrange work permits and residence visas for owners, staff and families, and support Golden Visa applications for investors. DFSA authorisation itself is a specialist regulatory process handled with licensed compliance advisers; accounting, audit and tax filings are handled by licensed accounting firms from our partner network. Contact us with the structure you have in mind and we will map the steps and the sequence.

Checklist: before you engage a DIFC asset manager or set up your own

• Look the firm up in the DFSA public register and read the list of financial services on its licence; the category (3C, 4 and so on) tells you what it may and may not do.
• Ask how you will be classified: Professional Client status requires an assessment of experience and net assets of at least USD 1 million (AED 3.67 million).
• Ask where each fund is domiciled and who the custodian is; the manager’s DIFC licence does not change the fund’s own jurisdiction.
• If you are setting up a manager, budget the base capital for your category (USD 500,000, AED 1.84 million, for a full Category 3C licence) plus the expenditure-based minimum and the compliance function the DFSA expects.
• Decide the investor’s own vehicle first: personal name, DIFC Prescribed Company, foundation, free zone or mainland holding company.
• Line up the bank account and the residence visas in parallel with the licence, not after it.

Conclusion

A Korean group with USD 800 billion (AED 2.94 trillion) under management has put a regulated Category 3C entity in Emirates Financial Towers to offer fund strategies to Gulf institutions, family offices and 4.3 million Indians living in the UAE. The facts behind the choice are on record: 10,018 companies and 592 wealth and asset managers in DIFC at mid-2026, a CEPA between the UAE and Korea in force since 1 May 2026, and a DFSA rulebook that sets the price of entry at USD 500,000 of base capital for a full asset management licence. For anyone allocating or building in Dubai, the news is less about one office than about the pattern: managers from Asia, Europe and the United States are choosing to be regulated where the capital sits.

Sources: Government of Dubai Media Office and Mirae Asset release of 7 September 2026; DFSA Rulebook, PIB Rules 1.3.1 to 1.3.7 and 3.6.2 (version VER53/07-26); DFSA client classification guidance on the USD 1 million Professional Client threshold; DIFC first-half 2026 results of 28 July 2026; UAE Ministry of Economy and Tourism page on the UAE-Korea CEPA; Embassy of India, Abu Dhabi, Indian community data (2024).

FAQ

What did Mirae Asset announce in Dubai on 7 September 2026?

Mirae Asset Global Investments opened an office in the Dubai International Financial Centre, in Emirates Financial Towers, and its entity Mirae Asset Investment Managers (DIFC) Limited received a Prudential Category 3C licence from the DFSA, firm reference F012649. The licence lets the firm manage and distribute collective investment funds to institutional and professional clients across the GCC. The group manages more than USD 800 billion (AED 2.94 trillion); Mirae Asset Global Investments manages more than USD 400 billion (AED 1.47 trillion) across 22 markets.

What can a DFSA Category 3C firm do?

Under PIB Rule 1.3.5 of the DFSA Rulebook, Category 3C covers managing assets, managing a collective investment fund, providing custody other than for a fund or crypto assets, managing a restricted profit sharing investment account, acting as trustee of an express trust and issuing stored value. It excludes taking deposits, lending, dealing in investments as principal or agent, and fund custody or trusteeship, which belong to Categories 1, 2, 3A and 3B. Clients are institutional and professional, not retail.

How much capital does a DFSA Category 3C firm need?

PIB Rule 3.6.2 sets the base capital requirement for Category 3C at USD 500,000 (AED 1.84 million). It drops to USD 140,000 (AED 514,000) if the firm only manages assets, a restricted profit sharing account, a public fund or a credit fund, and to USD 40,000 (AED 147,000) if it only manages other collective investment funds. The firm must also meet the expenditure-based capital minimum, so the actual requirement depends on its annual costs.

Who can invest with a DIFC asset manager such as Mirae Asset?

Institutional investors and Professional Clients as defined in the DFSA Conduct of Business module. An individual is assessed as a Professional Client after the firm confirms relevant experience and net assets of at least USD 1 million (AED 3.67 million), a threshold in force since 1 April 2016. Retail investors usually reach such funds through banks and distribution platforms that hold their own licences.