国际“朋友圈”再扩容丨深圳市福田区与阿联酋阿布扎比金融自由区(ADGM)正式缔结友好交流合作关系

(Beijing, April 13, 2026) Futian District People's Government of Shenzhen and ADGM, the international financial centre of Abu Dhabi, the Capital of  the United Arab Emirates (UAE), formally signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Beijing, establishing a framework for a bilateral exchange and cooperation across multiple sectors, including economic, cultural, tourism, and educational and financial collaboration.

Together, under the MoU, both parties will promote mutual development and strengthen international engagement through structured cooperation and knowledge exchange, marking the addition of an important partner from the Middle East to Futian's ever-expanding international friendly exchange network.

The signed MoU establishes a non-binding framework for cooperation, with both parties committed to maintaining regular dialogue, sharing insights, and exploring new areas of collaboration over time. It will also enable the exchange of delegations and participation in official events, further strengthening institutional and commercial ties between the two jurisdictions.

The MoU was signed between Mr. Deng Jun, Director of General Office of Futian District People’s Government of Shenzhen and His Excellency (H.E.) Rashed Al Blooshi, CEO of the Registration Authority (RA) of ADGM.

Commenting on the collaboration with ADGM, Mr. Deng Jun said, “In the context of jointly building a community with a shared future for mankind, there is immense potential for international economic and trade cooperation as well as people-to-people exchanges. The signing of the MoU between Futian District and ADGM marks a further step toward practical cooperation between the two sides. We have reached a consensus to take a regular communication mechanism as a key lever, to facilitate the swift implementation of short-term and medium-term cooperation projects, and to jointly achieve greater progress.”

Commenting on the collaboration with Futian District, H.E. Rashed said, “This collaboration with Futian District marks an important step in further strengthening ADGM’s international partnerships and deepening connectivity between Abu Dhabi and key global financial hubs. By fostering knowledge exchange and collaboration across areas such as financial innovation, talent development, and investment structures, we are creating new pathways for capital, ideas, and opportunity to flow between our markets. This agreement reflects ADGM’s continued commitment to enabling sustainable growth, supporting cross-border investment, and advancing Abu Dhabi’s position as a leading global financial centre.”

In international exchanges, friendly exchange relationships are increasingly becoming a vital platform for deepening cooperation and promoting development. This collaboration represents shared ambitions and the concrete implementation of the friendly relations between Shenzhen and Abu Dhabi by enhancing international connectivity and fostering cross-border financial and economic collaboration.

As early as 2024, Shenzhen had already established a cooperative and strong relationship with Abu Dhabi. In August 2025, the Shenzhen (Futian)-UAE Digital Economy Industry International Economic and Trade Cooperation Exchange was held successfully in Futian, laying a solid foundation for deepening mutual trust and advancing practical cooperation between the two sides.

ADGM is a globally recognised international financial centre (IFC) and a catalyst for Abu Dhabi’s economic diversification. Offering a world-class regulatory framework as the only IFC in the Middle Eastern region with the direct application of English Common Law, open economic policies, and a dynamic innovation ecosystem, ADGM has focused on the development of fintech, AI, and sustainable finance, and has become a benchmark for financial innovation in the region and beyond.

Its industrial development priorities are highly aligned with Futian District's focus on finance and technology. The two sides share common visions in financial openness, technological empowerment, and green development, with complementary strengths and exceptionally broad prospects for cooperation.

In 2026, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting will be held in Shenzhen, presenting Futian District with a historic opportunity to deepen international exchanges and expand high-level opening-up. Currently, Futian District is actively integrating into the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) construction. Guided by the theme of “WITH OPEN ARMS WE WELCOME APEC,” it is comprehensively advancing the district's internationalisation process and continuously expanding its global cooperation network.

From leveraging the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone (HTCZ) to carry out deep collaboration with Hong Kong and leading international research institutions in fields such as AI and biomedicine; to organising headquarters enterprises and fashion brands from the district to showcase on international stages such as the China International Import Expo (CIIE) and Milan Fashion Week (MFW) ; and further to successfully hosting a series of collaborative activities with business delegations from North America, Europe, South America, and the Asia-Pacific region, Futian District is continuously growing cooperation with global economies.

The newly-established collaboration with ADGM, especially the MoU's strong emphasis on financial innovation, will introduce unprecedented momentum into the development of both sides, yielding more mutually beneficial outcomes across finance, fintech innovation, and beyond.

Building on this new foundation, Futian District will continue to deepen its global economic and trade ties with APEC members and global partners, advance institutional opening-up with a broader vision, and contribute solid “Futian strength” to Shenzhen's high-quality BRI co-construction, while ADGM will leverage its position as a trusted, forward-looking financial centre to drive innovation, connectivity, and sustainable growth.