Keeping an eye on the UAE’s evolving competition regime

Diana Froyland, Senior Counsel, Commercial, featured in the July/August 2026 issue of Lexis Middle East Law Alert, providing her insights on the UAE’s new Competition Law Implementing Regulations.

In “An Eye on the Competition”, Diana examines Cabinet Decision No. 59/2026, which introduces the Implementing Regulation to Federal Decree-Law No. 36/2023 (the UAE Competition Law), replacing the previous 2014 regulations. The new regulations provide greater practical detail on areas including dominance, predatory pricing, exemptions, economic concentrations, complaints and investigations, bringing sharper rules and increased scrutiny under the UAE competition regime.

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AI and Data Privacy: Proposed Changes to the DIFC Data Protection Regulations

The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) has released a consultation paper outlining proposed amendments to the DIFC Data Protection Regulations. The proposed changes focus principally on Regulation 10, which addresses Personal Data processed by autonomous and semi-autonomous systems, and introduce a new Regulation 11 on accreditation and certification. In this article, we summarise the proposed changes and the practical points that DIFC businesses should now consider.

Trade marks, hotels and houses: the real estate landscape in the UAE

The UAE is well known as a tourism destination for people around the world, with year on year visitor number growth from 2022 to 2025, culminating in a record 19.59 million overnight visitors in 2025. Dubai International has been the world’s busiest international airport for the past 11 years, with a record 92.3 million passengers in 2025.

UAE Central Bank Restricts WhatsApp for Banking Communications: Implications for E-Commerce Retailers

The Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) has issued regulatory guidance prohibiting licensed banks and financial institutions from using consumer messaging applications, including WhatsApp, for customer-facing financial communications. Although the prohibition is directed at regulated financial institutions, its practical consequences extend considerably further. For e-commerce retailers operating in the UAE, many of whom have embedded WhatsApp into the core of their sales and customer engagement models, the implications are immediate and require careful attention.

Keeping an eye on the UAE’s evolving competition regime

Diana Froyland

Related insights

AI and Data Privacy: Proposed Changes to the DIFC Data Protection Regulations

Trade marks, hotels and houses: the real estate landscape in the UAE

UAE Central Bank Restricts WhatsApp for Banking Communications: Implications for E-Commerce Retailers