The Dubai Financial Market (DFM) has announced its new trading hours, which will take effect on Monday, January 3, 2022, with a five-hour trading period from Monday to Friday between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.
The Monday to Friday trading window aligns with local and international financial institutions, adding to DFM’s recent momentum by increasing the participation of overseas players, who presently account for half of the market’s trading activity and one-third of the investor base.
The new trading hours were developed in collaboration with local and international market participants, such as investors, brokerage firms, and financial institutions, and will harmonise DFM’s operations with international financial markets, improving the market’s regional and global competitiveness.
DFM’s Background
The DFM began operations on March 26, 2000, after being established as a public organisation with its own legal entity by Decree 14/2000 issued by the Dubai government. The Executive Council of Dubai voted on December 27, 2005, to convert the DFM into a public shareholding company with a capital of AED 8 billion split into 8 billion shares, and 20% of the capital, or 1.6 billion shares, was issued via an initial public offering (IPO).
The public sale was well-received, with subscriptions totaling AED 201 billion, exceeding all expectations. The Dubai Financial Market Company was launched on the stock exchange on March 7, 2007, with the trade code DFM.