International investment platform Novia Global has received a licence from the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA).
Following the approval, Novia Global will establish an office in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), it said in a statement today (19 February).
As part of the Novia Global expansion, Mark Maplesden will join Novia Global as its Principle Representative Officer.
Maplesden has worked in the wealth management sector in the UAE for over 10 years, most recently as co-owner of Maplesden Griffin & Partners where he introduced specialist investment opportunities to independent financial advisers and wealth managers to professional firms seeking to develop their businesses in international markets.
His career also encompassed stints at Equiom Group, Utmost International, Generali and Scottish Widows, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Novia Global CEO Steve Andrews said: “Dubai’s economic and investment landscape are impossible to ignore. There are over a thousand financial companies in the DIFC, while Dubai is home to over $950 billion in private wealth and set to attract many more high net worth individuals.
“A growing number of advisers and clients want to be a part of this success story, and we see an on-the-ground presence as essential to our own role in helping make that possible. Dubai is already recognised as having a world-class financial services ecosystem, as well as a progressive regulatory regime that clearly encourages and supports state-of-the-art fintech.
“We see Dubai and the broader region as a spectacular market, it is now arguably the hub to the world and Mark is the ideal hire for harnessing all the opportunities that it presents.
We’re all extremely excited by this move, which very much reflects our continued efforts to provide new services, products and solutions for international advisers and their clients.”
Maplesden added: “This is a fantastic time for Novia Global to establish a presence here, and I am very much looking forward to helping build the Novia brand in what has always been an exciting and forward-thinking market to work in. The Novia Global platform is innovative, transparent, and designed to provide advisers with a solution to match their clients’ evolving expectations which will ultimately help them to deliver good client outcomes.”
Investment international recently reported that Novia Global had launched its own Stocks and Shares ISA to address the issue of expats’ savings being left in “suspended animation”.
Novia Global, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), provides a platform service for advisers, private banks, trust companies and their clients.
