Dubai, United Arab Emirates,October 2026: The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), the independent banking, financial services, and markets regulator of Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), has imposed a fine of USD 109,200 (AED 401,000) on Vault Wealth Limited (VWL) for carrying on financial services in or from DIFC without being authorised by the DFSA.
VWL agreed to settle the matter. The DFSA therefore reduced the fine by 30% from USD 156,000 (AED 573,000) to USD 109,200 (AED 401,000).
VWL is incorporated in the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) and is licensed by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) and provides financial services, including advising on investments or credit and arranging deals in investments. However, VWL has never been authorised by the DFSA to provide financial services in or from DIFC.
The DFSA found that VWL breached the Financial Services Prohibition in Article 41(1) of the Regulatory Law 2004 by providing the following financial services in or from DIFC without the required DFSA authorisation, including:
- Advising on Financial Products; and
- Arranging Deals in Investments.
In particular, between February and May 2024, VWL employees worked from the offices of a related DIFC entity, Vault Technology Limited, which was not regulated by the DFSA. During this period, prospective clients were invited to the DIFC office, where VWL provided financial advice and assisted clients with onboarding onto an investment platform. Prospective clients also provided know-your-customer documentation for the purpose of arranging the creation of investment accounts.
The DFSA also found that the DIFC office did not indicate that the DIFC entity was separate from VWL. This could have led prospective clients, meeting VWL personnel in DIFC, to believe that VWL was authorised by the DFSA to provide financial services in or from DIFC.
VWL’s senior management were aware of the requirement to obtain DFSA authorisation. However, despite that awareness, VWL did not proceed with obtaining authorisation and continued providing financial services in or from DIFC. Senior management also failed to act on concerns raised by VWL’s then Compliance Officer regarding the absence of the required licence. The DFSA treated these matters as aggravating factors when determining the fine.
Alan Linning, Managing Director, Enforcement, of the DFSA, commented: “The prohibition against providing financial services in or from DIFC without the required DFSA authorisation is fundamental to the integrity of the DIFC’s regulatory framework and to the protection of those who use, or may use, financial services within the Centre. Authorisation by another regulator does not permit a firm to conduct financial services in or from DIFC. Firms must ensure that they have the appropriate DFSA authorisation before undertaking regulated activity here.
The action taken by the DFSA demonstrates that we will intervene where firms operate outside the regulatory perimeter and will impose sanctions that reflect the seriousness of such conduct and deter others from doing the same.”
The DFSA remains committed to developing, administering, and enforcing world-class regulation of financial services within DIFC. The DFSA will continue to take appropriate enforcement action to protect users and prospective users of financial services and to preserve confidence in DIFC’s regulatory framework.
A copy of the Decision Notice setting out full details of this matter can be found in the Decision Notices section of the DFSA website.
