DFM trading value rises 22% to AED 162 billion in nine months as profit falls

Dubai Financial Market (DFM) said on Thursday, October 29, that traded value rose 22% to AED 162 billion in nine months, while net profit before tax fell to AED 586.4 million.

The figures cover the nine months to September 30. Total traded value was AED 133 billion in the same period of 2025.

Average daily traded value rose 25% to AED 883 million, from AED 709 million a year earlier.

The total number of trades increased 24% to 3.16 million. Average daily trades rose 26% to about 17,200, from 13,600.

The gains came over 184 trading days, against 188 days in the first nine months of 2025.

Net profit before tax was AED 586.4 million, compared with AED 930.8 million a year earlier.

Revenue was AED 753.2 million, against AED 1.1 billion. The 2025 figure included one-off income of AED 461.9 million from the sale of an investment property.

The 2026 revenue comprised AED 511.2 million in operating income and AED 242 million in investment returns and other income.

Expenses excluding tax were AED 166.8 million, compared with AED 162.6 million. EBITDA reached AED 642 million, a margin of 85.2%.

In the third quarter, revenue was AED 196.2 million, against AED 204.5 million in the third quarter of 2025. Net profit before tax was AED 143.2 million, against AED 153.7 million.

Market capitalisation stood at AED 993 billion at the end of September, compared with AED 995 billion a year earlier.

The DFM General Index closed the period at 5,960.54 points, 1.4% lower since the start of the year.

Helal Saeed Al Marri, chairman of DFM, said the rise in traded value reflected “sustained investor engagement and the growing depth of Dubai’s capital markets”.

DFM said it attracted 55,460 new investors in the nine months, and international investors made up 72% of new registrations. The total investor base now exceeds 1.3 million.

Institutional investors accounted for 73% of traded value, up from 70% a year earlier. Foreign investors contributed 51% of trading activity.

Foreign ownership stood at 19% of market capitalisation, and institutional ownership at 86.5%.

Hamed Ali, CEO of DFM and Nasdaq Dubai, said the results showed “deeper liquidity, broader participation and wider access to the market”.

DFM said it handled retail subscriptions to the Ministry of Finance’s inaugural Retail Sukuk through the DFM Subscription platform, the DFM app and the iVestor app.

The Sukuk was listed on Nasdaq Dubai on July 2, with more than 18,000 investors subscribing through DFM channels.

In September, eligible investors on the baraka investment app gained the ability to buy DFM-listed shares directly in AED.

EFG Hermes also launched fully digital onboarding through its EFG Hermes ONE app, with DFM and Dubai CSD. Investors can obtain a DFM investor number and open a trading account entirely on a mobile phone.

For the whole of 2025, DFM reported total traded value of AED 174 billion and average daily traded value of AED 692 million. Net profit before tax was AED 1.06 billion, against AED 409.3 million in 2024.

The nine-month traded value of AED 162 billion in 2026 compares with that 2025 full-year total of AED 174 billion. The investor base stood at 1.25 million at the end of 2025.