ADGM Square's towers on Al Maryah Island, seen across the water

ADGM

The financial district driving Abu Dhabi.

Abu Dhabi Global Market is where the world’s biggest investment firms are setting up in the Gulf.

Updated 21 October 2026.

01 People

ADGM’s workforce has grown 67% in the last 18 months.

ADGM counts everyone employed by firms in its jurisdiction across Al Maryah and Al Reem. The explosive growth in professionals has created soaring demand for premium and luxury homes for executives and C-suite professionals.

People working in ADGM

+67% since end 2024

  • End 202429,338
  • End 202544,339
  • June 202649,027

Counts Al Maryah and Al Reem together; earlier years predate Al Reem joining ADGM and are not comparable.

Source: ADGM, H1 2026 results

  • +4,688

    Joined in the first half of 2026 alone

  • 3,986

    Operating companies, up 34%

  • 13,974

    Active licences

  • Source: ADGM, H1 2026 results

Global firms that have set up in ADGM since 2023

31 household names

  • BlackRock
  • Goldman Sachs
  • UBS
  • Morgan Stanley
  • Capital Group
  • Bain Capital
  • Barings
  • Hillhouse
  • Blue Owl
  • Rokos Capital
  • Man Group
  • KKR
  • Julius Baer
  • Partners Group
  • HarbourVest
  • Davidson Kempner
  • DWS
  • Fortress
  • Binance
  • Circle
  • PGIM
  • Nuveen
  • General Atlantic
  • Marshall Wace
  • TPG
  • AXA IM
  • Blackstone
  • Apollo
  • Brevan Howard
  • Ardian
  • Dalio Family Office

Sources: ADGM H1 2026 results; ADGM FY2025 results; ADGM FY2024 and FY2023 results; ADGM at Milken 2026; ADGM on the Al Reem expansion; Mubadala and Aldar expansion announcement; Global Financial Centres Index 40 via EnterpriseAM; Global SWF.

02 Map

Map of the ADGM

Two islands, one financial free zone.

Map of ADGM: Al Maryah Island and Al Reem Island

10×

ADGM's footprint after adding Al Reem, about 1,438 hectares

ADGM established its core on Al Maryah Island, a premium financial district with state-of-the-art infrastructure, high-end retail and Grade A offices. As commercial growth and the workforce surged, its jurisdiction was extended in 2023 to neighbouring Al Reem Island. That made ADGM's footprint about ten times larger, to roughly 1,438 hectares, giving it room to absorb overspill, accommodate corporate expansion and integrate a far wider mix of offices and homes.

  • Al Maryah IslandThe original, ultra-premium core: luxury commercial towers, premier hospitality and high-end retail.
  • Al Reem IslandThe expansion zone, added to handle rapid workforce growth with diverse, scalable property to meet continuing demand.

Source: Gulf Business, ADGM financial district to expand to Al Reem Island

03 Today to 2035

Watch ADGM build out, year by year.

Drag through the decade to see what is already here and what lands next: Grade A offices, branded residences, new communities, a marina, new hotels and three new bridges.

EXPANSION ZONE · PLANNEDAL MARYAH ISLANDAL REEM ISLANDNExpansion works begin450,000+ sq m offices3 new bridgesMarinaNew hotelsRepton School3,000+ homesRetail and diningSt. Regis ResidencesW ResidencesRiviera ResidencesThe GalleriaWaterfront fountain (under way)Riviera IIFour Seasons · RosewoodADGM SquareOne Maryah PlaceCleveland ClinicRitz-Carlton ResidencesJumeirah ResidencesMuheiraSorbonne Abu DhabiReem Mall · Snow Abu DhabiTara Park

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Positions of future projects are indicative.

Today

Now

A working financial district: Grade A towers, five-star hotels, a hospital, a university, two malls, and 49,027 people at work.

0
New homes from these projects
0
New Grade A offices, sq m
9
Landmarks on the map
Now2028203020322034

Here today

9 milestones

04 Capital

The money under management keeps compounding.

Assets managed from ADGM more than tripled in 2024, then kept growing at double-digit rates. Abu Dhabi now ranks 13th among the world's financial centres.

+245%

Growth in assets under management, 2024

Growth in assets under management, year on year

  • 2024+245%
  • 2025+36%
  • H1 2026+54%

Source: ADGM, H1 2026 results

  • 392

    Financial services firms, up 27% in a year

  • 190

    Fund and asset managers, running 276 funds

  • 13th

    Global Financial Centres Index, Sept 2026, up from 21st

  • Source: ADGM, H1 2026 results

05 Offices

Prime offices are effectively full.

Firms arriving in ADGM are competing for a shrinking pool of Grade A space, and rents are rising to match. When the best offices are full, demand spills into the surrounding districts.

Office towers along the Al Maryah Island canal

99%

Occupancy of prime Grade A offices

Abu Dhabi, H1 2026 (Cushman & Wakefield)

Prime and Grade A office occupancy, Abu Dhabi

  • 94%

    Q4 2024

  • 98.5%

    Q4 2025

  • 99%

    H1 2026

Prime and Grade A offices, Abu Dhabi. City-wide occupancy is 93% (Cushman & Wakefield) and 95% (ADREC).

Sources: Cushman & Wakefield Core, Abu Dhabi office MarketBeat Q4 2025; Cushman & Wakefield Core, Abu Dhabi H1 2026 update.

ADGM’s office stock today

~250,000 sq m

ADGM's five Aldar towers on Al Maryah: Al Sila, Al Sarab, Al Maqam, Al Khatem and Al Maryah Tower.

Source: ADGM, office space

06 Future office supply

New supply is coming, with most Grade A space late in the decade.

Cushman & Wakefield expects most of the announced Grade A pipeline in 2029 to 2030, and the market to stay landlord-favourable until then. The biggest single scheme is earmarked for ADGM itself.

New office supply across Abu Dhabi, sq m

Cushman & Wakefield

95k2026
35k2027
82k2028
174k2029

386,000 sq m over 2026 to 2029.

Source: Cushman & Wakefield Core, Abu Dhabi H1 2026 update

Under construction since October 2024

One Maryah Place

98,000 sqm

Two linked Grade A towers by Aldar and Mubadala inside ADGM, with retail, a rooftop restaurant and nearly 2,200 parking spaces.

Source: Gulf Business, One Maryah Place groundbreaking

Map of Al Maryah Island with the expansion area highlighted at its northern end

07 Expansion

Al Maryah Island expansion

AED 60bn+

Development value

450,000+ sq m

Of new Grade A offices

  • Due to sheer demand, Aldar and Mubadala, Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund, have formed a joint venture to develop the island's last 500,000 sq m of land, with enabling works from 2026.
  • More than AED 60bn in development value.
  • 1.5 million sq m of new floor area, including 450,000+ sq m of Grade A offices.
  • 3,000+ luxury waterfront homes.
  • 40,000 sq m of retail and fine dining.

What the expansion adds

  • 75 m

    Bay fountain with water shows

  • 2.5 km

    Of air-conditioned walkways

  • 20%

    Of the land kept as open space

  • 3

    New bridges to Al Reem and the mainland

1.8× the Grade A space in ADGM's five existing towers (~250,000 sq m)

Sources: ADGM and Mubadala, Al Maryah Island expansion announcement; ADGM, office space.

08 Lifestyle and infrastructure

World-class amenities, here already.

Catering for the expanding workforce

ADGM works across two islands. Al Maryah is the corporate core, with five-star hotels, The Galleria and Cleveland Clinic; Al Reem is the residential district, with beaches, Reem Mall and schools. The AED 60bn expansion adds more of everything, so executives rarely need to leave.

Rosewood Abu Dhabi on Al Maryah Island at dusk

Luxury hotels

09 Homes

Homes near ADGM are re-rating now.

Sales volumes, values and rents are all moving up in ADGM, across Al Reem and Al Maryah, as the workforce continues to expand rapidly.

Al Reem Island's towers above the mangroves at sunset
Al Reem Island. Sa7er90, CC BY-SA 4.0.

The residential pipeline

About 71,000 homes are due across the emirate by 2030, peaking at about 21,800 in 2028, with Al Reem among six districts delivering 77% of it (ADREC). Apartments made up 66% of the 36,900 homes under construction in July, and about 70% of them complete in 2026 and 2027 (Knight Frank).

Sources: ADREC, Abu Dhabi Real Estate Market Report H1 2026; Knight Frank, Abu Dhabi Residential and Office Market Review, Summer 2026.

10 Global comparison

A fraction of the price of the world's financial centres.

ADGM competes with London, New York, Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai's DIFC for the same firms and the same people. Its homes cost a fraction of theirs, while its workforce, assets and prices are growing faster.

What US$1 million buys

About 9 times the space on Al Reem as in Hong Kong.

Square metres, drawn to scale

  • Hong Kong23 sq m
  • Singapore28 sq m
  • London33 sq m
  • New York34 sq m
  • DIFC, Dubai87 sq m
  • Al Maryah Island102 sq m
  • Al Reem Island204 sq m

Hong Kong, Singapore, London and New York: prime homes, Knight Frank PIRI, Q4 2025. DIFC: median sale price, Q2 2026. Al Maryah and Al Reem: average apartment price, ADREC, H1 2026. Converted at AED 3.6725 to the dollar. The sources measure different stock, so treat the gaps as a guide.

Price per sq ft in US dollars, and how prices moved

  • Hong KongPrime homes, Knight Frank$4,039
  • SingaporePrime homes, Knight Frank$3,318
  • LondonPrime homes, Knight Frank$2,815
  • New YorkPrime homes, Knight Frank$2,732
  • DIFC, DubaiMedian sale price, DLD~$1,050

ADGM

  • Al Maryah IslandAverage apartment price, ADREC~$900
  • Al Reem IslandAverage apartment price, ADREC~$450

Price changes: Hong Kong, Singapore, London and New York, prime prices in 2025 (Knight Frank PIRI 100); DIFC, apartment asking prices in the year to July 2026 (Bayut). Abu Dhabi apartment prices rose 20% in the year to June 2026 (ADREC). Sources: Knight Frank, The Wealth Report 2026 (PIRI 100); ADREC H1 2026 apartment prices per sq m, via Masterpiece Property; iRealEstate, DIFC median price per sq ft (DLD transactions, Q2 2026); Bayut, DIFC apartment sale price index; dubizzle, Abu Dhabi Sales Market Report H1 2026; ADREC, Abu Dhabi Real Estate Market Report H1 2026.

  • 01

    The price ceiling

    Al Maryah's apartments average about US$900 per sq ft, branded residences included (ADREC). Prime homes cost about US$2,700 to US$2,800 in New York and London, about US$4,000 in Hong Kong, and in Singapore transactions regularly exceed US$6,000 per sq ft (Knight Frank).

  • 02

    Opposite directions

    Prime prices fell 4.7% in London and 2.1% in Hong Kong in 2025, and rose 0.8% in New York (Knight Frank). Abu Dhabi apartment prices rose 20% in the year to June 2026 (ADREC).

  • 03

    The yield engine

    Projected gross yields run at about 6.3% on Al Reem and 7.3% on Al Maryah (dubizzle, H1 2026), while ADGM's workforce grew 67% in 18 months.

11 Why it matters

What ADGM means for your purchase.

  1. 01

    Well-paid jobs arrive first

    Every firm that sets up in ADGM brings portfolio managers, analysts, lawyers and compliance teams who need somewhere to live. ADGM added 19,689 people in 18 months, and 392 financial services firms now operate there.

  2. 02

    Offices are full, so firms compete

    With prime and Grade A space around 99% let and most new Grade A supply not due until 2029 to 2030, landlords hold the pricing power. Office leasing on Al Reem rose 148% in the first half of 2026 as demand spread beyond Al Maryah.

  3. 03

    Homes close to work re-rate first

    Al Reem and Al Maryah sold AED 10.5bn of homes in six months, and Al Reem apartments rose 18% in a year. The 3,000+ homes in the Al Maryah expansion are years away; demand is here now.

  4. 04

    The premium spills outward

    Senior hires look beyond the financial district: to Saadiyat's beaches and schools, Hudayriyat's sport and space, and Ramhan's marina. The capital's wealth is concentrating, and the best addresses benefit.

12 Our recommendations

Our recommendations in ADGM.

The live launches we rate most highly across Al Maryah and Al Reem, chosen for buyers who want to live close to the financial district or let to its workforce.

  • The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Al Maryah IslandLiveAl Maryah Island

    SAAS Properties

    The Ritz-Carlton Residences

    Handover
    Q2 2030
    Status
    Live

    Ultra-luxury branded residences bringing The Ritz-Carlton's white-glove service to Al Maryah's prime waterfront: 165 homes with five-star concierge services and private dining, with the financial district and its fine dining on the doorstep.

    Source: Arabian Business, SAAS Properties unveils The Ritz-Carlton Residences

  • Riviera Residences by Mered, Al Reem IslandLiveAl Reem Island

    Mered

    Riviera Residences by Mered

    Handover
    Q3 2029
    Status
    Live

    Designed by Pritzker Prize laureates Herzog & de Meuron, blending a Mediterranean feel with waterfront living: shimmering mother-of-pearl façades inspired by Abu Dhabi's pearl-diving heritage, a private marina and resort-style amenities including four pools.

    Source: Gulf Construction Online, Enabling works begin on Riviera Residences

  • Tara Park by Modon, Al Reem IslandLiveAl Reem Island

    Modon

    Tara Park by Modon

    Handover
    Q4 2029
    Status
    Live

    Six towers of 834 homes anchored around landscaped parkland, with a community-focused outdoor lifestyle and direct links to downtown Abu Dhabi and Al Reem's shops, Reem Mall included.

    Source: Modon, Tara Park

Within reach of ADGM

Our analysed launches near the financial district.

Distances are straight-line from ADGM Square on Al Maryah Island.

Sources

Photos from Wikimedia Commons: Al reem island by Sa7er90 (CC BY-SA 4.0); Al Mariah Island- Abudhabi by MAVARIZ (CC BY-SA 4.0); Central Skyline with IFC building from Star Ferry in Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong 2 by Daniel Case (CC BY-SA 3.0); Marina Bay, Singapore (P1110054) by Matti Blume (CC BY-SA 4.0); City of London Skyline from London Bridge by Oleg Yunakov (CC BY-SA 4.0); Lower Manhattan, New York skyline from Liberty Island 2021 by Percival Kestreltail (CC BY-SA 3.0); Dubai Skyline mit Burj Khalifa (cropped) by Tim Reckmann from Hamm, Deutschland (CC BY-SA 3.0).