ADGM launches commercial licence for tech start-ups
ABU DHABI, September 1, 2018
Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the leading international financial centre of the UAE capital, has launched new commercial licence for star-ups and professional services support programme to help transform the start-up sectors in the UAE capital.
The start-up license is sector-agnostic and enables entrepreneurs to obtain an ADGM operational licence, taking advantage of the same globally-recognized international operating standards that benefits current ADGM funds, multinationals, SMEs, advisers and other registered entities.
A unique regional platform based on Common Law, ADGM is favoured by financiers and other stakeholders across multiple capital-raising, structuring and investment activities, giving start-ups the optimal base and ideal environment for capitalization and growth, said the statement from ADGM.
The new tech start-up license is highly flexible; where start-ups can receive a full operational license, the option to apply for four residential visas and meet the requirement for a registered address through a range of options, at a nominal cost of $700 only, it stated.
Nurtured through their financing lifecycle, from seed to IPO, start-up ventures can begin their journey in this highly cost-effective way, underpinned by the reputable legal framework, robust regulatory regimes for finance, flexibility in structuring options, and access to a growing community of funds, banks, family offices and advisers found at ADGM, it added.
The first of its kind in the UAE, the programme is a partnership with leading local and international advisers, aiming to help entrepreneurs from all sectors build up business skills and enhance the investability and scalablility of their ventures, covering areas such as legal, compliance, Finance, accounting and VAT.
This programme complements and adds to the support available from the many sector-specific incubators and accelerators in Abu Dhabi and the UAE, to which ADGM-registered start-ups have access.
On the launch of the ADGM Tech start-up licence, CEO Dhaher Bin Dhaher Al Mheiri said: "The Tech Start-up License and the Professional Services Support Programme provide tangible solutions to address set-up costs, access to funding and business support. They are only two of the many ADGM initiatives designed to help this important sector."
"Together with the many excellent support initiatives from Abu Dhabi government and the greater entrepreneurship ecosystem, they will serve to make Abu Dhabi an even more attractive base for new businesses and ultimately promote economic diversification, foster growth and stimulate the region’s innovation environment," stated Al Mheiri.
Omeed Mehrinfar, the managing partner of Plug and Play, one of the world’s largest innovation platforms and incubators, said: "Plug and Play sees ADGM as the ideal platform to host startups from across our international locations that are looking to expand in the GCC, and larger Middle-East region."
"With the new license and Professional Services Support Programme, startups will be able to leverage ADGM’s top-tier ecosystem of investors, advisors and corporate partners and operate their businesses at scale," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
