Talent Gaps in Dubai's Hedge Fund Build-outs

With insights from the Selby Jennings Hedge Fund Team

Dubai’s hedge fund market is expanding at pace, but the growth in firms is putting increasing pressure on the talent pool. As more multi-strategy platforms establish teams in the DIFC, demand is rising for experienced investment professionals alongside the finance, control and regulatory specialists needed to support them.

The sharpest shortages are in portfolio managers, quant researchers, fund finance and control, and DFSA Licensed Functions such as compliance.

For those firms that are expanding in the region, understanding where those gaps are (and how to secure and retain the right people) is becoming just as important as establishing a presence in the first place.

 

Key takeaways

• DIFC now hosts more than 100 hedge fund managers, 81 of them running over $1 billion, after doubling in under two years.
• Portfolio managers, quant researchers and senior finance, control and regulatory professionals are key pressure points in a fast-growing market.
• Firms that start international hiring early are better placed to secure talent before local competition intensifies.

 

Dubai's hedge fund boom, by the numbers

The scale of the expansion has changed considerably in a short period. DIFC registered its 100th hedge fund in December 2025, more than doubling the 50 hedge fund managers recorded at the start of 2024. Of those managers, 81 had more than $1 billion in assets under management.

New arrivals during 2025 included North Rock Capital, Baron Capital Management and Strategic Investment Group. They joined established firms such as Brevan Howard, Dymon Asia and Qube Research and Technologies in the region.

The wider DIFC financial ecosystem has grown alongside the hedge fund market. The DFSA's 2025 Annual Report recorded 121 authorised fund management firms and 276 funds at the end of 2025. Assets under management in the sector reached $176 billion.

For hedge funds, Dubai’s attraction is well established. Tax advantages, a time zone that connects Asian, European and American markets, access to regional capital and DIFC’s legal and regulatory framework have all helped draw firms to the Centre. As more managers establish teams there, competition for experienced investment, finance and regulatory talent is becoming a more significant part of the build-out challenge.

 

Where the hedge fund hiring gaps actually are

At investment level, senior portfolio managers with a demonstrable track record remain among the hardest hires to secure. The pool of people who can be trusted to run a book and build a team inside a multi-strategy risk framework is small

Quant researchers are another pressure point. As firms build systematic and data-led capabilities in the region, they need people who can move beyond theoretical modelling into live research, signal development and production environments.

Less visible, but potentially just as disruptive, are the finance and control functions. Fund finance, fund accounting and controller roles are becoming a persistently under-supplied bottleneck as firms add entities, strategies, vehicles and investors. Fund administration, NAV, LP reporting and audit are areas of particular shortage.

Regulatory and compliance hiring presents a different kind of constraint. Compliance Officers, Money Laundering Reporting Officers and other individuals carrying out DFSA Licensed Functions need relevant experience and must be authorised for the role.

Under DFSA GEN 7.6.5, the DFSA considers an individual’s integrity, competence and capability, financial soundness and proposed role when assessing whether they are fit and proper. This makes senior compliance hiring a key early consideration for newly established hedge fund teams.

For firms starting a Dubai build-out, the Selby Jennings Hedge Fund Team's first question is usually which of these hires has to be in place before the others can function. The answer varies by strategy, but a controller or Compliance Officer search that begins after the portfolio manager is signed tends to become the critical path.

 

Why firms still source senior hires internationally

Dubai's local talent pool is growing, but it is still developing compared with London and New York. Those professionals who relocated to Dubai during earlier waves of expansion have built local networks and strong track records. Therefore, they are now highly valuable as they have both international experience and knowledge of the regional market.

Dubai is now a genuine financial centre, but many of the people needed to build its next generation of hedge fund teams are still based elsewhere.

London remains a major source market for financial talent relocating to Dubai. New York, Hong Kong and Singapore are also relevant pools for firms seeking portfolio managers, quant researchers and senior control professionals.

For firms, that means a recruitment strategy focused only on the existing Dubai market will miss part of the available talent pool. Relocation, family considerations, notice periods and non-compete restrictions need to be considered early in the process, particularly for senior hires.

The team runs Dubai mandates alongside its London, New York, Hong Kong and Singapore desks for this reason. Mapping who is open to relocation, and on what timeline, is done before a role goes live so that notice periods and non-competes are already known when an offer is made.

 

The retention problem: firms raiding each other's desks

As the number of hedge funds in DIFC has grown, the hiring challenge has changed. Firms are no longer competing only for professionals willing to relocate from London, New York or Hong Kong. They are also competing for portfolio managers who are already established in Dubai and able to move between platforms without another international relocation.

Many companies have been headhunting new employees from competitors, with portfolio managers prime targets for rival platforms. This is a natural consequence of having a large number of competing firms within the same financial district, as the pool of suitable candidates is finite but relatively easy for competitors to find.

This local competition sits within a wider multi-strategy talent market where proven investment performance commands significant value. Globally, reported packages for senior portfolio have exceeded $100 million while guarantees of $30 million to $50 million have also featured in aggressive recruitment campaigns.

For firms building in Dubai, retention therefore needs to sit alongside recruitment planning from the outset. A strong offer may secure a portfolio manager initially, but holding on to them will depend on the mandate, capital allocation, decision making authority and support available to build and run the desk.

In the team's conversations with portfolio managers, the points that decide a move sit beyond the headline number. Starting capital, how quickly it scales, drawdown limits, pass-through costs and hiring authority for the desk come up early. Firms that have settled those terms before approaching candidates are in a stronger position when a rival platform calls.

 

What this means for firms building out in Dubai

The talent challenge is largely one of timing. Waiting until a desk is ready to launch before starting the search can leave firms competing for the same limited pool of portfolio managers, quant researchers and senior control professionals.

Firms should engage overseas candidate pools early, particularly in London, New York, Hong Kong and Singapore, where many professionals with relevant hedge fund experience are still based. Relocation packages for those hires also need to reflect the reality of moving a senior person and their family.

The strongest build-outs will come from firms that understand where relevant talent sits, which professionals are genuinely open to relocation and where finance, control and regulatory hiring could slow expansion if it begins too late.

The team's advice is to run the control and compliance searches alongside the investment search. DFSA authorisation for a Licensed Function takes time regardless of where the candidate is based, and it is easier to absorb that time at the start of a build-out.
Dubai's hedge fund growth is creating opportunities on both sides of the market. For employers, the advantage will come from securing scarce talent before the rest of the district begins searching for the same people.

 

Planning a Dubai hedge fund build-out?

The Selby Jennings Hedge Fund Team handles hedge fund recruitment across Dubai and the major international centres, covering portfolio manager, quantitative, fund finance and regulatory hiring.

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