ICM.com Gains Second UAE Licence About a Year after Deciding to Exit the UK

ICM.com has obtained its second United Arab Emirates (UAE) licence as the brokerage brand strengthens its presence in the Middle East. Announced today (Tuesday), ICM MENA, a subsidiary of ICM.com, obtained the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) licence from the authorities in Dubai.

The new licence will allow the ICM.com brand to provide promotional and introductory services across the UAE.

“Global Expansion Strategy”

“Dubai’s financial ecosystem is one of the most attractive in the world, and this regulatory approval allows us to reach out to the vast client base within the UAE, backed by full compliance with UAE regulations,” said the CEO of ICM.com, Shoaib Abedi, who further pointed out that the new licence is part of the broker’s “global expansion strategy.”

Besides the new Dubai licence, ICM.com is already regulated by Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM). The broker also obtained a Seychelles licence last November to expand the reach of its offshore operations.

The other jurisdictions where ICM.com is regulated are Mauritius, South Africa, and Switzerland.

Going Out of the UK

Interestingly, ICM.com decided to relinquish its authorisation from the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) last year and has already applied to cancel its licence with the regulator. However, the regulator has yet to finalise the cancellation.

Although the UK unit of ICM.com still allows new client onboarding, it has restricted this to professional clients only.

Dubai has become an attractive destination for CFDs brokers. Finance Magnates recently reported on the opening of a new Dubai office by Polish broker XTB, only a few months after it obtained an SCA licence in the city. Plus500 is another brokerage giant that entered the UAE market recently with an SCA license.

Other brokers that secured an SCA licence in Dubai this year include CPT Markets, INGOT Brokers, STARTRADER, and Kama Capital. BDSwiss is another broker that acquired an SCA licence last year before its Cyprus licence was suspended by the regulator.