The core message of the session was that Abu Dhabi’s move into the “transparent” category of JLL’s Global Real Estate Transparency Index materially strengthens investor confidence by giving global capital another reason to consider the UAE. The speaker introduced GRETI as a biennial benchmark used by investors to compare real estate markets before allocating capital. The index covers 146 cities in 88 countries, evaluates 260 individual metrics, and groups them into six weighted sections: performance measurement, market fundamentals, governance and listed vehicles, regulatory and legal, transaction process, and sustainability. Sustainability was singled out because its weighting increases every two years as it becomes more central to real estate transparency.

The main result highlighted was Abu Dhabi’s rise from the semi-transparent category into the transparent group, alongside Dubai and Saudi Arabia, with Abu Dhabi described as the fastest improver. The speaker attributed that improvement to stronger data infrastructure, regulatory strengthening, and strategic ambition, especially government-led efforts to digitize the real estate ecosystem. He connected this progress to the large developments being showcased at the event and said the transparency gains are visible in areas such as sustainability, wellness, living standards, and broader real estate market performance.

The investment argument was framed around the scale of capital that targets transparent markets: the speaker said 98% of global capital goes into transparent markets, equivalent to $1.72 trillion. In his view, Abu Dhabi and Dubai already had substantial dry capital and investment inflows before reaching transparent status, and the new classification adds another reason for global capital to enter the UAE. He also tied investor appetite to the “clarity of intent” in Abu Dhabi and Dubai around infrastructure investment, regulation, business relocation, professional migration, and the wider ecosystem attracting capital, companies, and talent.

The later sections looked ahead to issues likely to matter in future editions of the index. AI was described as a major new factor that can boost transparency while also introducing risks around data accuracy and trust. Energy, sustainability, data centers, logistics, industrial real estate, supply chains, and debt-market transparency were also identified as areas to watch. The speaker said Abu Dhabi currently sits at 33rd out of 146 and expressed confidence that it could reach the top 20 by 2028, citing planned transparency initiatives over the next eighteen months. The Q&A opened with a question about what Abu Dhabi could learn from France, ranked second, and the answer emphasized the advantage mature European markets have through deeper transaction histories.