UAE safest hub for parking money, to attract more millionaires despite Israel-Iran conflict, say immigration experts

The United Arab Emirates will attract more millionaires and continue to remain a paradise for high-net-worth individuals despite the tensions prevailing in the Middle East following the Israel-Iran war. Several international migration consultants and wealth managers believe that despite the conflict, the Emirates is still the safest country to park money and has always been a stronger magnet in a time of crisis in the Gulf region.

In an interview to The Khaleej Times, Armand Arton, CEO of leading immigration investment firm Arton Capital, claimed that he is hopeful the UAE will continue attracting even more millionaires than it had in the last five years. He said that the Emirates has always been the safest hub because of the infrastructure, the safety nets, the rule of law, the quality of life and the low tax.

Citing the Russia-Ukraine war and Donald Trump’s return to power in the US, Arton said that the conflict between Moscow and Kyiv was the last big wave of wealth that came in. He further stated that the taxation in the UK and the politics of Europe created a second wave of Europeans.


Talking about the third wave of Americans, the Arton Capital CEO said that it came after US President Trump was elected, as a lot of Democrats and others moved to the UAE. “We see that very high profile of people coming in and asking for the Golden Visa,” he added.

UAE attracted around 13,000 new millionaires in 2024, says report

Armand Arton’s claim was strongly backed by the UBS Global Wealth Report 2025, which came out on Wednesday, June 18, 2025, stating that the Emirates attracted around 13,000 new millionaires in 2024, which is a 5.8 per cent increase.

The rise brings the total number of high-net-worth individuals in the country to 240,343. The millionaires in the UAE command approximately $785 billion (2.88 trillion) in wealth, according to The Khaleej Times.

“War always comes with a very high human cost, but a localised conflict like the current situation is likely to have a very limited macroeconomic effect. Unless there is a major escalation, we would not see this as significantly changing global macro trends, including migration,” said Paul Donovan, chief economist at UBS Global Wealth Management.

Iran-Israel war “will create a new wave of people, says Arton

The Arton Capital CEO said that the Iran-Israel conflict, which escalated sharply after the US struck three nuclear sites in Iran on Sunday (June 22, 2025), “will create a new wave of people from the neighbouring country who will come to the UAE and who are still considering that this is the safest place to park their money and family.”