What Securities and Commodities Authority does

The Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA), formally renamed the Capital Market Authority (هيئة سوق المال / CMA) effective 1 January 2026 under Federal Decree-Law No. 32 of 2025, is the UAE's federal regulatory authority for securities and commodities markets. Established in 2000 and headquartered in Abu Dhabi with a regional branch in Dubai, it exercises exclusive statutory authority over capital market supervision, investor protection, and market integrity across the federation. Its service portfolio spans commodity contract listing and delisting (serving exchanges such as Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange), investment fund registration, passporting, and liquidation, public joint stock company authentication, covered warrants and certificates of deposit management, and financial activity licensing. The authority also issues regulatory frameworks including a 2026 Virtual Assets Regulatory Framework with five main units and eight regulated activities, a fintech regulatory sandbox, and sustainable finance legislation, while maintaining active membership in IOSCO (where its CEO chairs the Africa and Middle East Regional Committee), the Union of Arab Securities Commissions, and the Islamic Financial Services Board.

The authority's technology infrastructure is built around the SCACore digital portal, which enables electronic submission, status tracking, and decision delivery for regulatory applications. Service delivery is multi-channel, combining the digital portal, the Abu Dhabi headquarters, the Dubai branch, department-specific email addresses, and integration with broader UAE federal government platforms such as 171, u.ae, and Tawasul. Service fees are nominal and transaction-based — for example, 100 AED per page for authenticated articles of association, 3,000 AED for covered warrants cancellation, and 10,000 AED for local investment fund liquidation study requests. As a federal government entity, the authority does not generate commercial revenue; it is funded through the UAE federal budget and derives its operational mandate from statutory law rather than market-based revenue mechanics. Customer segments are mandatory rather than discretionary, comprising commodity exchanges, public joint stock companies, licensed financial services firms, investment funds, and financial market participants across the UAE.

Name

Securities and Commodities Authority

Legal name

هيئة سوق المال (Capital Market Authority)

Website

https://sca.gov.ae

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

The Capital Market Authority (formerly Securities and Commodities Authority) is the UAE federal regulator for securities and commodities markets, headquartered in Abu Dhabi with a Dubai branch, overseeing exchanges, investment funds, public joint stock companies, and financial services firms through statutory regulatory powers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Market Regulation

NAICS

Securities and Commodity Exchanges (523210), Securities and Commodity Exchanges (52321), Commodity Contracts Intermediation (52316)

SIC

Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200)

akta.pro primary industry

Commodity Derivatives Exchanges (Futures & Options on Commodities) (FSAFAMAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Commodities / Energy Clearing CCPs (FSAFAFAF), Commodity Electronic Trading Platforms (Energy/Metals/Agriculture) (FSAFANAF)

Keywords

• Securities regulation
• Commodities oversight
• Capital market authority
• Investment fund licensing
• Financial market supervision

Headquarters

HQ city

Abu Dhabi

HQ country

United Arab Emirates

HQ region

Middle East

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Regulatory Service Fees: Government service fees for processing various regulatory applications including company registrations, fund liquidations, commodity listings, and financial activity licensing

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Securities and Commodities Authority (renamed Capital Market Authority effective January 1, 2026) is the UAE federal regulatory authority overseeing securities and commodities markets. It provides regulated services including commodity contract listing/delistings, investment fund registration and liquidation, covered warrants and certificates of deposit management, authentication of public joint stock companies' articles of association, financial activity licensing, and complaint handling, all backed by Federal Decree-Laws No. 32 and 33 of 2025.

Product overview

The Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) operates as the UAE's regulatory body for securities and commodities markets. The organization offers a portfolio of core regulatory services including commodities contract listing, investment fund management (registration, passporting, cancellation), covered warrants and certificates of deposit services, and shareholding company governance documentation. SCA also maintains comprehensive regulatory frameworks through its Federal Decree-Laws, including the Capital Markets Law and Financial Markets Regulation Law, establishing an integrated regulatory system for virtual assets with five main units and eight regulated activities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Listing of Commodities Contracts Service

Quantifiable outcome

• Record growth in 2025 with markets entering a new phase of development

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal standard-setting body for securities regulation. SCA CEO re-elected as Chair of IOSCO Africa and Middle East Regional Committee, reinforcing UAE leadership in international financial regulation.
• Union of Arab Securities Commissions (UASA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional Arab organization for securities regulatory cooperation. Enables coordination on cross-border regulatory matters and harmonization of Arab capital markets standards.
• Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational standard-setting body for Islamic finance. Supports SCA in developing regulatory frameworks for Sharia-compliant financial products and services.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA): The independent regulator of financial services conducted within the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). DFSA is the most directly comparable peer as it regulates securities, derivatives, and fund activities within a major UAE free zone, operating in parallel geographic overlap with SCA's domestic jurisdiction.
• Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of ADGM: The regulator of the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), an international financial centre in Abu Dhabi. FSRA oversees securities, derivatives, funds, and virtual assets within ADGM and competes directly with SCA for regulatory jurisdiction over UAE-based capital markets activity.

Regional players

• Saudi Capital Market Authority (CMA): The sole regulatory and supervisory authority for the Saudi capital market, overseeing issuance, trading, and disclosure rules. CMA is a regional peer operating the largest GCC exchange (Tadawul) and shares similar GCC-focused mandates with SCA.
• Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB): The single regulator of Bahrain's financial sector, including banking, insurance, and capital markets. CBB is a GCC peer with integrated regulatory authority comparable to SCA's domestic UAE oversight role.
• Qatar Financial Markets Authority (QFMA): The independent regulator of Qatar's financial markets, overseeing securities exchanges, brokers, and asset management. QFMA is a GCC peer with comparable structure and mandate to SCA for overseeing a national capital market.

Broad incumbents

• Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong (SFC): Hong Kong's independent securities and futures regulator with cross-border gatekeeping authority for listings and virtual asset trading platforms. SFC is a comparable Asian capital markets regulator with similar scope to SCA's expanded mandate.
• UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA): The conduct regulator for financial services firms and markets in the UK. FCA is a global peer with broad jurisdiction over securities, derivatives, and fund activity, and a recognized IOSCO standard-setter.
• U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC): The federal securities regulator of the United States with global influence over capital markets. SEC is the benchmark securities regulator against which smaller authorities like SCA benchmark their frameworks and IOSCO standards.
• Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS): Singapore's integrated central bank and financial regulator, overseeing securities, banking, insurance, and virtual assets. MAS is a leading global peer known for forward-looking frameworks in fintech and virtual assets, comparable to SCA's expanding scope.

Others

• Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX): A major regional commodities and currency derivatives exchange operating within DMCC free zone. DGCX is a regulated entity under SCA's domestic jurisdiction (outside DIFC) and is a primary subject of SCA's commodity contract listing and delisting services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sca_uae
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@uaecma
• Facebookfacebook.com/share/1CXfVTh431/?mibextid=wwXIfr
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sca.ae
• Instagraminstagram.com/uaecma

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Securities and Commodities Authority