Our Eurasia, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) Market Advisory Group (MAG) provides thought-leadership and sets the strategic direction of UK-based financial and related professional services firms’ engagement in these regions.
We bring together senior practitioners from across the UK-based financial and related professional services industry to advise and provide insight on issues of greatest priority to the industry, and to support and develop policies that enhance trade and investment between the UK and markets in Eurasia, Middle East and Africa.
Our EMEA MAG is chaired by Adrian Cartwright, Global Partner, Clifford Chance.
Priorities of the EMEA MAG:
Engaging policymakers, regulators and local industry to deepen financial and related professional services sector collaboration and improve bilateral trade and investment across all regions.
Progressing key bilateral engagement across all regions in areas such as capital markets development, corporate governance, sustainable finance, FinTech, and regulatory cooperation.
Providing industry input into bilateral government engagements and free trade agreements.
Supporting the UK government’s economic development agenda in emerging markets, by delivering UK government funded technical assistance projects to develop open and well-regulated financial services sectors, consistent with international best practices in key markets.
Recent activities:
In October 2025, we launched the UK-UAE Capital Markets Connectivity Working Group to address regulatory and operational barriers to equity listings, support cross-border capital raising and strengthen market connectivity between the UK and UAE.
In December 2025, our CEO Miles Celic OBE and Chika Muorah, Associate Director, EMEA, visited Riyadh to deepen UK-Saudi financial and professional services collaboration. Discussions with senior stakeholders identified opportunities to strengthen market access, regulatory cooperation and practitioner-led engagement between the two markets.
The EMEA MAG met in April 2026 to agree its priorities across key markets in Eurasia, Middle East and Africa. The group discussed the impact of the US-Isreal-Iran conflict on firms' operation in the region. Members also had the opportunity to hear from HM Treasury on its priorities and planned Ministerial engagement in the region.
In June, the Middle East subgroup and EMEA MAG met to discuss current engagement in the Middle East. And heard from HM Government on the recently concluded UK-GCC Free Trade Agreement negotiations and key outcomes for our industry. Members were also given the opportunity to raise current barriers experienced in the Middle East and share how business has been affected by the US-Iran conflict.
Looking ahead, TheCityUK is establishing the UK-Saudi Financial Services Working Group as a formal, private sector-led forum that complement government-to-government engagement. The group will help turn strategic dialogue into tangible commercial outcomes that support growth in both countries.
For more information about our EMEA work programme please contact us.