Pakistanis Are Third Largest Foreign Investors in Dubai Real Estate
Pakistanis have invested $10.6 billion in Dubai real estate, ranking them as the third largest investors in the city on the Gulf. Indian inv...
Pakistanis have invested $10.6 billion in Dubai real estate, ranking them as the third largest investors in the city on the Gulf. Indian investors lead Dubai real estate investments with $29.8 billion, followed by British investors' $14.7 billion investment.
With at least $146 billion in foreign wealth invested, the Dubai property market is now the world's largest offshore investment market for foreign investors. It is now twice as large as the London real estate market in terms of wealth invested by foreigners through shell companies. There are nearly 20,000 unique foreign owners of Dubai real estate from Pakistan, the third largest number behind almost 35,000 Indian owners and about 23,000 owners from the United Kingdom, according to the EU Tax Observatory.
The record flow of foreign wealth into Dubai real estate has drawn the attention of the FATF (the Financial Action Task Force), the global anti-money-laundering watchdog. The UAE is now "under increased monitoring” (often referred to as the grey list) by the FATF. It is widely accepted that real estate is used for money laundering and hiding wealth from tax authorities.
Many rich Pakistanis, including top politicians and their family members, own real estate in Dubai, according to press reports. Most of the top politicians from Pakistani political parties like PPP, PML-N, ANP and MQM own Dubai real estate. A 2020 Transparency International report said the following about Dubai's attraction to foreign unexplained wealth:
"The UAE’s booming construction and real estate sector emerges as another major weakness. It accounts for a fifth of the Emirates’ GDP, but remains incredibly vulnerable to money laundering. Complex ownership structures can be used to obscure the identity of those buying property, as well as where their money is coming from".
"Despite the UAE’s role as a major international hub for finance and trade, the report concludes that authorities there are not cooperating with international partners. This could make the Emirates an attractive location in which “criminals could operate, maintain their illegal proceeds, or use it as a safe haven.”
"The FATF report confirms what investigative journalists, anti-corruption activists and whistleblowers have been saying for years: the UAE is a key piece in the global money-laundering puzzle. Its susceptibility to money laundering has seen it appear time and again in major cross-border corruption scandals".
Related Links:
Haq's Musings
South Asia Investor Review
The West Enables Corruption in Developing Nations
Did Musharraf Steal Pakistani People's Money?
Pakistan Economy Hobbled By Underinvestment
Raymond Baker on Corruption in Pakistan
Nawaz Sharif Disqualified
Culture of Corruption in Pakistan
Convicted Money Launderer Altaf Khanani Has Close Ties to Pakistan Politicians
Zardari's Corruption Probe in Switzerland
Politics of Patronage in Pakistan
British Crime Agency Lists Pakistan Among Top 3 Sources of Money Laundering
Riaz Haq's Youtube Channel
PakAlumni Social Network
Pakistanis Are Third Largest Foreign Investors in Dubai Real Estate
Pakistanis have invested $10.6 billion in Dubai real estate, ranking them as the third largest investors in the city on the Gulf. Indian inv...
