The suggestion was made at a recent fund industry forum held at the Dubai International Finance Centre in the UAE, where many of the representatives at a panel session, held as part of the forum, expressed their support for the idea.
The history of industry representative bodies in the UAE is a chequered one. The last association fell apart amid disarray and acrimony in early 2013, having lasted less than a year.
“There was a strong consensus that an industry body is required to represent the interests of managers across the GCC,” said Tobie van Heerden, managing director, Middle East Client Group at Investec Asset Management.
Peter Duke, head of Middle East distribution at Fidelity, said he would support the plan, but added it would need to be recognised by the right authorities and have a well organised structure, which would take time and resources to set up.
“Having a formal structure you can get behind, and having engagement between the industry and the regulators, makes perfect sense. I would happily get involved if I thought there were any legs to the proposal,” Duke said.
The 31-member Financial Services Association of the United Arab Emirates, as it was known, had a board that consisted of several local and international financial companies, including Fidelity Worldwide Investment, Franklin Templeton, ING and Allfunds Bank.
Another professional association, which aimed to represent leading Insurance Authority licensed advisers in the UAE, was floated about a year ago, but never came to fruition.
The number of regulators within the market and the lack of region-wide regulatory frameworks, along with heightened competitive pressures, have all played a role in defeating these collaborative efforts in the past; as have issues to do with organisational structure and who sits on the board.
Nigel Sillitoe, chief executive of the Dubai-based market intelligence company Insight Discovery, said he believed that the key to any successful future industry association would be in getting the regulators and market participants to work together in order to define its framework.
He said: “It would also require a compulsory code of conduct and a level of competence and educational attainment agreed by the association and regulators.”
