Record inflows of millionaires, family offices and global asset managers have turned the UAE into one of the world’s fastest-growing wealth hubs, and one of its most contested, as Singapore, Switzerland and Hong Kong compete for the same capital. Michel Longhini, the newly appointed CEO of Emirates Investment Bank (EIB), argues that what clients now want is not scale, but independence.

Longhini brings more than 35 years in private banking and wealth management across Europe, Asia and the Middle East. He joins EIB from First Abu Dhabi Bank, where he was group head of global private banking and sat on the bank’s executive committee. Before moving to the UAE, he spent more than a decade at the top of Geneva’s private banking establishment, as CEO of private banking at Edmond de Rothschild and, before that, at Union Bancaire Privée, following a long career at BNP Paribas that included leading its international wealth management and Asian private banking businesses.

In this conversation with Gulf Business, he explains why he chose a UAE-rooted independent bank over a global institution, how a younger and more entrepreneurial client is reshaping what a private bank must deliver, and where technology should stop. The human adviser begins, and why the transfer of wealth to the next generation may be the most structural shift facing the Gulf.

You’ve been in senior roles at First Abu Dhabi Bank, Edmond de Rothschild, Union Bancaire Privée and BNP Paribas before joining EIB. What drew you to an independent UAE private bank at this point in your career, and what does that choice say about where you see the industry heading?

After more than three decades working across private banking and wealth management in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, I was attracted by the opportunity to help shape an institution in its entirety and build something distinctive for the next generation of clients.

Emirates Investment Bank occupies a rare position. It is a UAE-rooted, independent, onshore private bank with a strong heritage, but also has the agility and ambition to evolve quickly. It combines the discipline and rigour associated with Swiss private banking with a deep understanding of this market and the families, entrepreneurs and businesses that have helped build it.

My decision also reflects where I believe the industry is heading. Clients still expect global capabilities, institutional-quality investment advice and robust risk management. Still, they increasingly value independence, direct access to decision-makers and advice that is not driven by the scale or product priorities of a large institution.

UAE has emerged as one of the world’s fastest-growing wealth hubs, attracting record inflows of millionaires, family offices and global asset managers. From your vantage point, what’s driving that momentum, and how sustainable is it as competition from other financial centres intensifies?

The UAE’s momentum is not the result of one policy or one economic cycle. Instead, it’s the combination of long-term economic diversification, global connectivity, an attractive environment for entrepreneurs and investors, and a clear commitment to making the country a place where people can build businesses, raise families and deploy capital over the long term.

We’re not only seeing wealth booked or managed here, but wealth creators are also moving their lives, businesses, investment teams and family offices to the UAE. That creates a much deeper and more sustainable ecosystem, supported by expanding capital markets, increasingly sophisticated regulation and a growing concentration of global financial expertise.

Competition from Singapore, Switzerland, Hong Kong and other centres will always remain intense, and that’s healthy. No financial hub can afford to rely solely on favourable taxation, lifestyle or historic inflows. Long-term competitiveness will depend on regulatory credibility, access to investment opportunities, talent, infrastructure and the ability to protect and serve increasingly complex international wealth.

The UAE has built strong foundations in each of these areas. Its challenge now is to continue raising standards as rapidly as the market is growing.

How is the UAE’s private banking landscape evolving, and where do the biggest opportunities lie over the next three to five years?

The UAE is evolving from an important regional banking centre into a comprehensive global wealth ecosystem. The conversation is no longer simply about managing a liquid investment portfolio. More and more clients are looking for support across their personal wealth, businesses, family structures, financing requirements, succession plans and international interests.

One of the biggest opportunities will be serving entrepreneurs and business-owning families as they professionalise the management of their wealth. This includes preparing for liquidity events, separating family and corporate assets, establishing governance structures and supporting the transfer of responsibility to the next generation.

There is also significant potential in private markets and alternative investments. Clients are looking beyond traditional listed equities and bonds, but access alone is not enough. They need rigorous selection, appropriate diversification, disciplined pacing and a clear understanding of liquidity and risk.

A third opportunity is cross-border complexity. Many clients have family members, businesses, residences and investments across several jurisdictions. The private bank increasingly needs to act as an orchestrator, coordinating with legal, tax and corporate, among others.

Over the next few years, the strongest private banks will be those that combine local judgement, global investment access, modern technology and institutional-grade controls without losing the personal relationship at the centre of the proposition.

The profile of the high-net-worth client is changing: younger, more global, more entrepreneurial, and often managing wealth across multiple jurisdictions and asset classes, from private markets to digital assets. How are their expectations reshaping what a private bank must deliver?

The next generation of high-net-worth clients is highly informed and comfortable in challenging traditional ways of doing things. They expect speed, transparency and access, but they also want sophisticated advice and a partner who understands the full context behind their wealth.

Many are entrepreneurs, so they do not necessarily divide their financial lives neatly between personal wealth, corporate interests and investment portfolios. They may hold operating companies, private equity investments, real estate and digital assets across several jurisdictions. So, a private bank must provide a much more holistic view and be able to coordinate across investments, financing, liquidity, succession and corporate advisory requirements.

They also expect greater transparency around performance, risk, costs and the rationale behind investment decisions. They want access to differentiated opportunities, particularly in private markets, but they do not want complexity.

Digital assets are another example of how expectations are changing. Clients increasingly expect their adviser to understand the asset class, even where the appropriate recommendation may be caution or limited exposure. A private bank’s role is not to follow every trend, but to help clients distinguish between innovation and speculation.

Every wealth manager is now investing heavily in digital capabilities, yet private banking has always been a relationship business at its core. How do you strike the balance between personalised advisory and digital innovation, and where should technology stop and the human adviser begin?

Technology should remove friction, improve transparency and give both clients and advisers better information. It should not attempt to automate trust.

Clients should be able to obtain a clear and timely view of their portfolios, access documents securely, communicate efficiently with the bank and complete routine instructions without unnecessary delays. Advisers should be supported by better data, portfolio analytics and risk tools, allowing them to spend more time understanding clients and providing advice rather than managing administrative processes.

The human adviser becomes even more important when circumstances are complex or uncertain. Technology can identify patterns and model potential outcomes, but it cannot fully understand a family’s dynamics, an entrepreneur’s emotional relationship with a business or the trade-offs behind a major life decision. It also cannot replace personal accountability when markets are volatile, and clients need clear judgement rather than another stream of data.

Global banking has weathered considerable turbulence in recent years: rate volatility, geopolitical fragmentation and episodes of stress in mature markets. How resilient is the UAE’s banking sector by comparison, and what underpins that strength?

The UAE banking sector has entered this period of global uncertainty from a position of considerable strength. Banks are generally well capitalised and liquid, regulation has become increasingly proactive, and the sector benefits from a growing and diversified economy, strong deposit growth and clear institutional support.

The latest Central Bank figures show banking-sector assets reaching Dhs5.4tn in 2025 (according to CBUAE’s 2025 annual report), with capital adequacy remaining above regulatory thresholds and stress testing demonstrating the sector’s capacity to withstand significant risks. That is important, but resilience is not only measured by balance-sheet ratios. It also comes from the quality of supervision, disciplined risk management and the ability of the authorities and financial institutions to respond quickly as conditions change

In a market dominated by large local institutions and international giants, you argue that independent private banks have an increasingly important role to play. What can a boutique, independent model offer clients that the big balance-sheet players cannot?

Large institutions have important strengths, including scale, broad international networks and substantial balance sheets. An independent private bank should not try to replicate those institutions. It should offer something meaningfully different.

Independence gives us the ability to begin with the client rather than with a distribution target or a predetermined product shelf. We can take a more open and flexible approach to identifying solutions, whether they are created internally or sourced from specialist partners around the world.

A focused model also creates greater proximity between clients, relationship managers, investment specialists and senior decision-makers. That can result in quicker decisions, greater continuity and a higher level of personal accountability. Clients know who is responsible for their relationship and can speak directly to the people making decisions on their behalf.

At Emirates Investment Bank, we also combine that boutique approach with the capabilities and regulatory foundations of an onshore bank. Clients can access investment management, global markets, corporate finance advice and everyday banking within a highly personalised environment.

Trends such as the great wealth transfer to the next generation, the rise of sustainable and Sharia-compliant investing, and growing appetite for private markets are reshaping portfolios globally. Which of these do you see defining wealth management in the Gulf?

All three will be important, but the transfer of wealth and responsibility to the next generation is arguably the most structural change facing the Gulf.

This is not simply a transfer of financial assets. It is a transition involving family businesses, governance, leadership, values and identity. The next generation may have different views on risk, sustainability, technology and geographic diversification. Banks must therefore be able to engage the whole family, facilitate difficult conversations and support governance and education as well as portfolio management.

Private markets will also become a more established component of portfolios. Many Gulf clients are entrepreneurs and are naturally comfortable with direct ownership and less liquid investments. The opportunity is significant, but allocations must be approached with discipline, particularly around manager selection, diversification, valuation and liquidity planning.

Ultimately, while the trends may evolve, the need for trusted advice remains constant. As the UAE’s trusted private bank, we are well positioned to help clients navigate change with personalised guidance, disciplined investment expertise and bespoke wealth solutions.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday the United States is still willing to negotiate an end to the Iran crisis but Tehran is not serious about talks, as the widening conflict disrupted two of the world’s most critical energy chokepoints.

Rubio made his comments in a meeting of Southeast Asian foreign ministers a day after three oil tankers carrying Saudi crude to Asia reversed course in the Red Sea, apparently in response to threats from Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis.

The Houthis, who control the coast at the mouth of the Red Sea, announced a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia on Monday, opening a potential new front in the war which has killed thousands of people across the Gulf since it began on February 28 with US and Israeli attacks on Iran.

With Iran already threatening shipping through the Strait of Hormuz leading out of the Gulf, the Red Sea has served as the main alternate route out for millions of barrels of Saudi oil per day.

A senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday that Tehran had received a proposal from mediators for a 10-day ceasefire in efforts to salvage the interim ceasefire agreement signed by the US and Iran in June, which replaced an earlier April ceasefire.

In another sign that diplomacy remains alive, Iran’s Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni has visited mediator Pakistan and asked Islamabad to continue its efforts.

Rubio said Washington was “always committed to diplomacy” but doubted whether Tehran was equally committed to negotiations.

“The problem we’re having right now is that they’re not serious about talks. If they’re serious, we’re serious. If they’re not, then we will do what’s necessary to protect our interests, and also the interests of our allies,” Rubio said in Manila.

He stressed that Iran could not be allowed to control the Strait of Hormuz, arguing it would create a dangerous precedent for the world including Southeast Asian countries, many of which have territorial disputes in the South China Sea with China.

“If we create a precedent in the Middle East where a nation state can decide that they are going to control an international waterway, charge a toll, and if you don’t pay them blow up your ships, we have created a very dangerous precedent, which will repeat itself in other parts of the world, including in this region,” Rubio said.

With no diplomatic breakthrough in sight, the US military bombed targets across Iran for an 11th straight night on Tuesday. Tehran residents reported hearing explosions in the early hours of Wednesday as Iran activated its air defences over the capital, Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency said.

Three locations in Iran’s Bushehr Province, home to Iran’s only nuclear power plant, were hit by US attacks early on Wednesday, an official told Iran’s state news agency IRNA, including an electricity post close to the plant.

Iran’s army said it targeted US military facilities in Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain with drones early on Wednesday. The army said it struck accommodation buildings and equipment storage facilities at Al Azraq air base in Jordan, and later targeted equipment warehouses and aircraft maintenance hangars at Sheikh Isa Air Base in Bahrain using Arash suicide drones.

Reuters was unable to immediately verify details of the attacks.

US President Donald Trump confirmed that 18 US service members had been killed so far in the war, including four in Iranian attacks on US military bases in Jordan and Iraq over the last few days.

Oil prices rose further in Asian trade on Wednesday after climbing more than 2% on Tuesday following the Houthi threats, with Brent crude hovering above $91 a barrel and US gasoline back over $4 a gallon.

“Gate of Tears”

In a letter to shippers, the Houthis on Tuesday threatened to attack any ships that load or discharge Saudi oil.

Trump said the Houthis had not yet shut the Bab el-Mandeb, the “Gate of Tears” strait leading into the Red Sea, and threatened to act against them if they did.

“So far it hasn’t happened,” Trump said. “If something like that happens, we take care of it.”

Three oil tankers loaded with Saudi crude for China and India made U-turns in the Red Sea on Tuesday, heading towards the Suez Canal rather than braving the Yemeni coast at the sea’s mouth.

Throughout the war, Saudi Arabia partially escaped the shipping disruption by piping oil to Yanbu on the Red Sea instead. But a full closure of that alternative route by the Houthis could reduce global oil supply as it would leave most Saudi oil exports trapped.

On Tuesday, Trump renewed his threats to again attack Iran’s nuclear facilities at Natanz “pretty soon”, which he said in June 2025 had been “totally obliterated” after the US military bombed the facility, buried in a mountain range, that month. Iran promised it would retaliate.

Fifty civilians have been killed and 500 wounded in the recent U.S. strikes on Iran, a health ministry official said.

The Saudi Ministry of Commerce has announced an exceptional three-month discount season, giving commercial establishments and online stores an additional opportunity to run promotional campaigns without affecting their annual allocation of permitted discount days, according to Okaz newspaper report in the Saudi Gazette said.

According to a circular issued to the Federation of Saudi Chambers, the exceptional discount season will run from August 1 to October 31, 2026. The period will not be counted as part of the annual limit for discount campaigns.

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The initiative is aimed at supporting the retail sector by providing businesses with greater flexibility to launch promotional offers while encouraging consumer spending during the three-month period.

Businesses encouraged to participate

The ministry said commercial establishments and e-commerce platforms can apply electronically for discount licenses through its website, allowing them to obtain, print and display the required permits for consumers with ease.

It also encouraged businesses to take advantage of the initiative while ensuring full compliance with the regulations governing promotional campaigns. The Federation of Saudi Chambers similarly urged private sector establishments to participate in the exceptional season to maximise benefits for both businesses and consumers.

Under the ministry’s existing regulations, commercial establishments are allowed to hold discount campaigns for up to 90 days each year, with the period divided into as many as three separate campaigns. Each license may cover a maximum of 45 days for either comprehensive or partial discounts.

The ministry clarified that the exceptional three-month discount season is entirely separate from the existing annual allocation. As a result, businesses will be able to conduct promotional campaigns during the August 1 to October 31 period without reducing the 90 days of discounts already permitted under current regulations, offering retailers an additional opportunity to attract shoppers and stimulate sales.

The Embassy of India in Abu Dhabi has confirmed that passport, visa, attestation and other consular services across the UAE will be outsourced to Al Hind Tours & Travels from July 22, marking the formal rollout of a new nationwide application network after weeks of legal uncertainty over the tender process.

Under the new arrangement, services will be delivered through 16 Indian Consular Application Centres (ICACs) located across all seven emirates, replacing the temporary walk-in system that had been operating directly from the Embassy of India in Abu Dhabi and the Consulate General of India in Dubai.

The announcement effectively clears the way for the transition after the outsourcing process was delayed by legal challenges in India. Last week, the Delhi High Court nullified the award of the contract to Alhind Tours & Travels following petitions by unsuccessful bidders challenging the technical evaluation process. The ruling came after the planned July 1 handover had already been suspended, forcing Indian diplomatic missions in the UAE to temporarily provide limited passport, visa and attestation services from their own premises.

Despite the legal setback, the Indian Embassy has now confirmed that Al Hind Tours & Travels will operate the outsourced services from July 22 through the network of ICACs that had already been established across the UAE.

According to the Embassy’s notice, applicants must book appointments through consularsevainuae.com, with appointment slots released twice daily at 9am and 9pm. Consular services will no longer be available at the Embassy of India in Abu Dhabi or the Consulate General of India in Dubai.

The ICACs will operate daily from 8am to 6pm, with applicants permitted to enter only 15 minutes before their scheduled appointment. The Embassy advised applicants to ensure they select the correct service category when making bookings.

The outsourced network comprises six centres in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, including Al Danah, Musaffah, Al Reem, Al Ain, Madinat Zayed and Ghayathi, while a further 10 centres will serve Dubai and the Northern Emirates. These include facilities in Bur Dubai, Dubai Investment Park, two locations in Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah, Kalba and Khor Fakkan.

The Embassy said the outsourced service provider will levy a service charge of Dhs19, inclusive of VAT, in addition to Government of India fees. The charge covers ancillary services including form filling, photography, document typing, domestic courier, printouts and photocopying.

Certain categories, including Tatkal passport applications, newborn cases, Emergency Certificates (EC) and senior citizens aged 60 years and above, will continue to be accepted on a walk-in basis at all ICACs on a first-come, first-served basis.

The transition restores the outsourced delivery model for one of the UAE’s largest expatriate communities after weeks of disruption, with the new network expected to handle passport renewals, visas, Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) services, Police Clearance Certificates (PCC), attestation and other consular services through dedicated application centres across the country.

Al Etihad Payments (AEP), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), has announced a landmark strategic partnership with Mastercard that will introduce the world’s first Jaywan-Mastercard co-badged credit card while strengthening the country’s digital payments infrastructure.

The agreement marks a major step in the UAE’s efforts to modernise its financial ecosystem, combining the capabilities of the national domestic card scheme, Jaywan, with Mastercard’s global payments network to deliver enhanced payment services for consumers, businesses and financial institutions.

Expanding the UAE’s payment ecosystem

As part of the collaboration, the partners will launch the first-ever Jaywan-Mastercard co-badged credit card, develop advanced infrastructure for switching and processing card payment transactions, and establish a new operations centre in the UAE. The centre will become part of Mastercard’s global network, providing advanced card payment services to local and regional markets, a WAM report said.

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The partnership is expected to strengthen the UAE’s position as a leading international financial hub by enabling the issuance of Jaywan co-badged credit cards that can be accepted worldwide. It will also see the implementation of a new Mastercard network node in the UAE, designed to process both domestic and international payment flows.

The move will place the UAE among the first countries to benefit from Mastercard’s latest payment technologies and services.

Supporting innovation and resilience

The partnership aligns with Al Etihad Payments’ mission to bring together banks, fintech companies, merchants and global technology providers to modernise the nation’s payment infrastructure.

By expanding payment options and supporting local innovation, the collaboration aims to improve resilience across the financial sector while helping businesses and financial institutions deliver more efficient services in an increasingly digital economy.

The launch of the Jaywan-Mastercard credit card, with Mastercard serving as the primary international scheme for the programme, is expected to deliver secure, simple and accessible payment experiences. It will also provide banks, fintech firms and merchants with additional capabilities to better serve customers, grow their businesses and contribute to the national economy.

Advanced payment capabilities

Under the agreement, Mastercard will deploy next-generation payment infrastructure across the UAE to support Jaywan debit, prepaid and co-badged credit cards.

The initiative will include advanced switching and processing capabilities, value-added services, cybersecurity solutions, fraud prevention tools and threat intelligence technologies. Drawing on Mastercard’s global expertise, the partnership aims to support the UAE’s national payment objectives while encouraging continued innovation across the sector.

Saif Humaid Al Dhaheri, the CBUAE’s assistant governor for Banking Operations and Support Services and chairman of Al Etihad Payments, said, “This collaboration represents a defining moment for the UAE’s payments ecosystem. By combining national infrastructure with global innovation, we are strengthening sovereignty, resilience and choice, while accelerating the UAE’s journey toward a future-ready financial system.”

Dr Dimitrios Dosis, president, EEMEA, Mastercard, added, “As Mastercard celebrates forty years in the UAE, this latest milestone with Al Etihad Payments reflects how together we can strengthen the foundation for continued growth in trade, tourism and commerce. We are bringing together trusted technology, global scale and deep local relationships to strengthen domestic resiliency while remaining deeply connected to the global economy.”

As the partnership develops, Al Etihad Payments and Mastercard said they will continue exploring flexible, market-driven solutions that support the UAE’s digital transformation agenda, expand payment choice and further strengthen the country’s future-ready domestic payments ecosystem.