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Dubai: Sporadic cases of fraud in the UAE's private and public sectors has put the limelight on corporate governance and compliance.
To promote a culture of compliance, the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is bringing in an international institute to train financial sector executives in ethical practices.
The International Compliance Association (ICA), a global provider of academically recognised training in anti-money laundering, compliance and financial crime prevention, will be setting up office in DIFC to offer programmes in the UAE.
Speaking to Gulf News about the need for improvement in compliance and corporate governance, Nasser Al Shaali, chief executive of DIFC, observed that the discipline of compliance is under-developed in the region.
"As the Middle East's capital markets enter a new phase of growth, a sound compliance framework is essential for regional companies to ensure long-term business sustainability," said Al Shaali.
According to statistics, he said, companies that apply good corporate governance typically see a 30 per cent premium on their stock price as opposed to those who don't.
Robust growth
Bill Howarth, chief executive of ICA, said that the UAE's commitment to developing financial compliance procedures reflects its concerted efforts in this direction.
"This coupled with the robust growth in finance and banking has led to a surge in demand for compliance training in the country."
Al Shaali said "firms and institutions like these, together with the financial centre's regulations legal framework will help towards developing compliance capabilities of the region."
To deal with the recent fraud cases in the UAE, Carolyn Hanson, head of compliance, ICA, said that the institute can offer support and consultancy services to organisations, to assist them in crisis management and preventive control.
"You should always look at a crisis situation as an opportunity to improve and more forward from it," said Hanson.
ICA awards seven internationally accredited Certificates and Diplomas in Compliance and Anti-Money Laundering through its arm - International Compliance Training (ICT). They are awarded in association with the University of Manchester Business School.
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