Dubai and Cyprus sign MoU agreement

The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) says the move signals a growing interest on the part of European institutions in doing business in the Dubai International Financial Centre.”

Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Central Bank of Cyprus. The initiative extends Dubai’s regulatory links with the supervisors of financial institutions in Cyprus and, says the DFSA, reflects both Authorities’ commitment to “co-operation in relation to prudential oversight and inspections.” The new MoU adopts the model for information-sharing that was developed by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision and follows similar arrangements the DFSA has already established with banking supervisors in the UK, US, Germany, France, India, Singapore and China.

Commenting on the value the DFSA places on good relations with Cyprus’ banking regulator, CEO Paul Koster said,  “The Central Bank is the independent supervisor of banks in Cyprus which was integrated into the Euro system in January 2008. The DFSA already values its formal working relationship with Cyprus’s markets’ regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission, having signed an MoU in May 2008. This signing indicates a growing interest on the part of European institutions in doing business in the Dubai International Financial Centre.”

Koster added that recent financial turmoil has reinforced the importance of effective dialogue and collaboration between banking supervisors. “We must find better ways to work together to resolve current problems and prevent their repetition. Agreements of this kind should help that process.”