Is Dubai a money-laundering hub?

With its skyscrapers, luxury villas and a high concentration of millionaires and billionaires, Dubai’s rise to global city and business hub has captured the world’s attention.

It’s one of seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates (UAE) an absolute monarchy long ruled by the Al Maktoum family.

The rapid development of the city has made it one of the fastest growing economies in the world.

But the Washington-based Center for Advanced Defense Studies (CADS) has obtained leaked property data from the city-state.

And it has found that those who make money out of wars, who finance “terror”, or are involved in drug trafficking use Dubai’s real estate market as a haven for money laundering.

Presenter: Peter Dobbie

Guests:

Casey Kelso, advocacy director at Transparency International

Andreas Krieg, assistant professor at the Defence Studies department at King’s College, London

Laurent Lambert , senior policy analyst at the Social and Economic Survey Research Institute at Qatar University