Business Scale-Up UAE · A Scale-Up Hub Programme
Scale beyond it.
An invitation-only international programme for established companies considering the United Arab Emirates as a base for regional growth.
By invitation
Attendance is by invitation and selection is on merit. Capacity is limited to the number of companies the follow-up can genuinely support.
Thirty to forty people
A single executive session from one market. Small enough for a real conversation, which is the point of the format.
Two days
Day one is a working session on what operating from the Emirates actually involves. Day two is a closed day of structured meetings with the AlNser team and, where they join us, partners from the United Arab Emirates who represent the enabling ecosystem
By invitation
Attendance is by invitation and selection is on merit. Capacity is limited to the number of companies the follow-up can genuinely support.
Thirty to forty people
A single executive session from one market. Small enough for a real conversation, which is the point of the format.
Two days
Day one is a working session on what operating from the Emirates actually involves. Day two is a closed day of structured meetings with the AlNser team and, where they join us, partners from the United Arab Emirates who represent the enabling ecosystem
Before it had
a name
The programme began as a series of private sessions for companies considering the United Arab Emirates as a base. Rome. Seoul. Hong Kong.
The same conversation came up each time. These were not companies looking for a market. They had already succeeded at home and had reached the point where growth meant operating from somewhere else. What they lacked was not ambition and not capital. It was a clear view of how the decision actually works. Which jurisdiction, which structure, which first customer, and in what order.
Business Scale-Up UAE is that work brought together as a programme.
Already funded.
Already proven.
The programme is for owners and chief executives of companies with established revenue, management depth and the intent to operate from the United Arab Emirates rather than simply export to it. It is not for companies raising capital, and it is not an introduction to the idea of the Gulf.
The purpose is deliberately narrow. A chief executive should leave with an accurate picture of where the opportunities actually are, and a working understanding of how entry happens: which jurisdiction, which structure, which first customer, and in what order.
Why the United Arab Emirates
For companies planning regional expansion, the question is increasingly how the UAE fits into the operating model: which market, structure and route to growth make commercial sense.
#5 Globally
IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2026, 1st in Economic Performance
#1 Arab World
Regional leader for the tenth consecutive year
9% Standard corporate tax rate
Above AED 375,000 taxable income; UAE Ministry of Finance
100% Ownership
Full foreign ownership across most sectors
The UAE also offers a fast-expanding network of Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPAs), reaching high-growth markets across Asia and Africa, and is negotiating a landmark economic partnership with the European Union. For a company or investor, this is preferential reach into much of the world’s growth, from a single, stable base.
Business Scale-Up UAE offers no capital and no grants. The programme represents the United Arab Emirates as a whole, and the choice of emirate, free zone, structure and partner stays with the participating company, decided on fit. Participation carries no obligation in either direction.
The same questions,
in the same order.
Companies that establish successfully in the United Arab Emirates tend to work through the same questions in the same order. The session covers each of them.
Market fit
Whether the UAE is the right entry point for your sector and your regional objectives.
Operating model
What the business will actually do here, which determines everything that follows.
Jurisdiction
Mainland or free zone, selected according to activity, sector, customers and operating requirements rather than cost alone
Licensing
Trade licence, activity classification, name reservation and documentation.
Regulatory approvals
Sector-specific approvals and compliance requirements.
Launch
Banking, hiring, premises and first customers.
Participants decide for themselves how to proceed and with whom. The programme makes no recommendation on jurisdiction, structure or service provider.
Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza)
Institutional Partner
Business France
Institutional Partner
Strategic Establishment & Infrastructure Partnership
Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza)
Strategic Establishment & Infrastructure Partnership
Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza)
Strategic Establishment & Infrastructure Partnership
Masdar
Business Setup Partner
Shuraa Business Setup
Business Setup Partner
Shuraa Business Setup
Business Setup Partner
Registration & Executive Networking
Welcome & Opening Remarks
H.E. Fahad Saeed Al Raqbani
UAE Ambassador to France
Mohamed Naser Al Zaabi
Chairman and Managing Director
AlNser Holding
Jafza: Your Gateway to the Middle East, India and African Markets
Anders Kron
VP Business Development
DP World GCC
RoadMap to Your UAE Business Setup
Waseem Rather
Overseas Operations Director
Shuraa
Presentation Title TBC
Theo Da Silva
Vice President of Partnerships & Investments
Offshore Wind & UK, Masdar
Business France: Presentation Title TBC
Pascal Roger
Middle East Regional Activity Director
Business France
The Scale-Up Hub Model: A Base for Expansion into the UAE and Beyond
Mariam Hovhannisyan
Head of Global Partnership Affairs
AlNser Holding / Scale-Up Hub
Fireside Conversation: What Does It Really Take to Scale in the UAE? Success stories and practical insights
Moderator and participants TBC
Agri-Business & Food
The UAE imports over 90% of its food; established French brands have immediate access.
Technology & AI
Heavy national investment in AI, data and digital transformation, a shared France–UAE priority.
Advanced Industry
Industrial zones actively seeking European joint-venture and manufacturing partners.
Logistics & Infrastructure
A regional hub where French engineering and infrastructure expertise is highly valued.
Healthcare & Med-Tech
Sustained growth in healthcare spending; French medical technology in demand.
Energy & Sustainability
Deep bilateral cooperation across nuclear, clean energy and the energy transition.
Embassy of the United Arab Emirates, Paris.
Full details are provided to confirmed participants.
Welcome Address
H.E. Mohamed bin Naser Al Zaabi
Chairman and Managing Director
AlNser Holding
Trade, distribution and re-export
Logistics and supply chain
Industrial and specialty manufacturing
Food processing, agri-trade and cold chain
Technology and business services
Venue : (TBC)
City
Future Editions
Rome, Italy
January 2027
In development
Düsseldorf, Germany
February 2027
In development
Astana, Kazakhstan
March 2027
In development
San Francisco, United States
April 2027
In development
Houston, United States
May 2027
In development
Oslo, Norway
June 2027
In development
Hong Kong, China
September 2027
In development
Seoul, Korea
September 2027
In development
Scale-Up Hub
Business Scale-Up UAE is designed to help companies understand the UAE opportunity, meet relevant stakeholders and determine their next steps.
For some companies, that is where the process ends. Others decide to move forward with establishment, partnerships or commercial development in the UAE.
Where a company chooses to continue, the Scale-Up Hub can support the next stage: from market assessment and establishment to partner identification, commercial access and operational execution.
Participation in Business Scale-Up UAE carries no obligation to engage AlNser, the Scale-Up Hub or any programme partner.
AlNser Holding is an Abu Dhabi-based family business group with decades of operating experience in the United Arab Emirates. Its companies work across energy and sustainability, technology and digital, construction and facilities management, business advisory, logistics and food and beverage.
Through its Scale-Up Hub, AlNser works with established international companies entering the UAE and using it as a gateway to the Gulf and the wider Middle East, from initial market assessment through establishment, partner identification and commercial follow-up.
Decades
Of trading in the United Arab Emirates
10+
Companies across the group
1,500+
Employees
Two ways to take part
Institutional partners
Government entities, embassies, trade organisations, chambers and other institutions contribute the market context, institutional access and business networks relevant to each edition.
Category partners
Selected organisations contribute the practical expertise and capabilities companies may need when moving from market interest to execution such as business establishment, logistics, banking, legal, technology, infrastructure and other areas relevant to operating and scaling from the UAE.
Partner involvement is shaped around the needs of each edition and does not affect the independent selection of participating companies or the choices they make afterwards.
Register Your Interest
Companies may register their interest in an upcoming edition. Participation is subject to review and invitation.
Business Scale-Up UAE is a private-sector initiative convened by AlNser Holding. It complements rather than duplicates the international work of United Arab Emirates federal and local authorities, and does not represent or speak for the United Arab Emirates or any authority within it. The programme offers no capital and no grants.