While most wealth and asset managers have mastered using data for compliance and operations, UAE and GCC firms face a unique opportunity: using that same data to deepen investor relationships and accelerate growth.
The firms winning new mandates and retaining assets aren’t just collecting better data — they’re putting real-time, actionable insights directly into the hands of their distribution and investor relations (IR) teams at every client touchpoint.
Data’s next stop: The front office
Asset and wealth managers aren’t short on quality data. In the UAE, regulatory innovation and the rise of family offices have accelerated the need for integrated, high-quality data environments. Across the globe, where nearly one-third of Grant Thornton’s 2025 Global Digital Transformation Survey respondents said their organisation’s data quality needs work, less than 20% of respondents in the asset management industry agreed.
Today, most of that rich information powers compliance workflows and operational dashboards. Essential, yes — but it’s leaving money on the table. The firms gaining an edge are moving from isolated data that remains largely siloed in back-office processes to a model that delivers one trusted view of investors, products and performance.
Confronting evolving investor demands
Quarterly PDFs and passive-only portfolios won’t cut it — these investors won't hesitate to move their assets. And institutional allocators face similar pressure. Many have their own analytics desks and demand the same digital transparency from external managers.
Meeting these expectations requires distribution and IR teams to have the right information instantly available. But most firms deal with data scattered across departments, making it nearly impossible to get a unified view for client conversations or strategic decisions.
“The costs of building integrated data systems can be significant, but doing nothing is riskier,” Kashif said. “When you model out declining revenue streams and shrinking investor retention, you realise scattered data could cost you catastrophic assets under management (AUM) losses. Suddenly, the investment math looks very different.” In the UAE, regulatory requirements add further complexity to data management.
So how do firms bridge this gap without the massive IT budgets and in-house expertise of larger managers? Three strategic moves can turn your existing data into a competitive advantage.
Three ways to turn data into a growth engine
1. Build a single, trusted environment — then actually use it
For most firms, the problem isn’t data quality; it’s data accessibility and trust.
“Most firms already have the data they need. The real value comes from sharing and aligning that data across investment, sales and product teams — enabling a unified view of client priorities and smarter, more coordinated engagement,” said Shona. “Breaking down silos and building shared data environments empowers teams to deliver the best outcomes for clients and the business.”
So how are asset managers investing in technology enablement this year?
CRM and customer interfaces are the top technologies that global asset managers are investing in this year, according to Grant Thornton’s 2025 Global Digital Transformation Survey.
“We expect new systems to be able to improve data processing and management, better communication between systems and more usable information for end users to enhance the overall client experience. We expect the information will allow better business decision-making and increased productivity,” said Kashif.
Forming mixed teams — IT, data science, sales, marketing, compliance — for data initiatives can help signal to teams that data strategy is a companywide priority. The firms that are succeeding are those that place revenue growth at the center of their strategy, then build their data needs and operational workflows around that goal.
2. Apply AI where it drives revenue
Many asset managers approach AI as an operational efficiency play — automating compliance, streamlining reporting and reducing manual processes. While these applications deliver value, they miss the larger revenue opportunity: deploying AI to make distribution and investor relations teams fundamentally more effective.
The strategic shift involves using predictive capabilities to identify prospects showing behavioral signals of readiness to allocate, detecting early client retention risks and optimising engagement timing based on data patterns rather than sales cycles.
Asset management-specific solutions such as Chronograph, iLevel and Cobalt for portfolio analytics can layer onto existing tech stacks. But when selecting a tool, Sameer emphasised: “Tools should always drive back toward strategic objectives — being able to measure results and how you’re meaningfully changing outcomes with these tools versus just throwing money at things that you think might help.”
The evaluation should focus on specific business questions: Can the AI capability identify prospects earlier in their decision process? Does it reduce time-to-close on new mandates? Are retention conversations happening proactively rather than reactively?
Supported by government initiatives and a strong digital infrastructure, UAE asset managers recognise the importance of leading with these questions, paving the path in AI adoption and fintech solutions.
3. Personalise the investor experience at scale
Distribution teams that leverage behavioral data and portfolio intelligence can deliver the level of personalisation today’s investors demand. This means moving beyond regular reporting to what Kabir calls 'relentless digital engagement' — text-based alerts on portfolio performance, mobile search features for investment recommendations without requiring portal logins and real-time access to alternative investment opportunities based on individual risk profiles.
“Investors want to be involved more because there are so many tools for them to use independently in the market,” Sameer said. “You’ve got to have a differentiator — your technology platform has to provide something truly different.”
CRM data and portfolio intelligence enable asset managers to deliver those differentiated experiences and strategic, one-to-one conversations, which fuel opportunities with younger investors.
“It’s about being more thoughtful and proactive in addressing second- and third-generation family members,” Kashif said. “Help younger investors understand traditional and alternative investments. Plan and manage liquidity for life events like college debt and first home purchases. It can include financial wellness education and training delivered through digital channels on demand. When you build depth in the relationship, you have a much greater likelihood of retaining those assets.”
Measuring these experiences focuses on revenue uplift against the fixed costs required to enable personalisation capabilities, tracked through metrics such as net promoter scores by client segment, cross-sell volume and message engagement rates. In the UAE, high mobile penetration and the popularity of secure messaging platforms such as WhatsApp have transformed investor communications, making real-time engagement and compliance with local data privacy laws critical.
Tools that can aid the personalisation journey:
- Adobe Experience Platform or Salesforce Financial Services Cloud for omnichannel personalisation
- Segment for behavioural tracking
- AWS Personalise for AI-based product and content recommendations
Where to focus now
Start with existing infrastructure
Firms don’t need to rip and replace legacy systems to begin using data in ways that give investors the personalisation, speed and clarity they expect. This shift is possible even within a firm's existing tech stack.
“Most firms don’t need to overhaul their entire tech stack,” Samer said. “The real opportunity lies in optimising what’s already there — leveraging existing cloud platforms like Azure, AWS or Oracle to unlock advanced analytics AI and scalable data management. This approach keeps costs variable, aligns technology spend with growth and delivers true agility.”
Rather than wholesale system replacement, asset managers can harness their current cloud infrastructure’s full suite of services
— from data warehousing and networking to AI-driven analytics. This creates flexible, modular data environments that scale with demand, allowing firms to deploy new analytics, reporting or personalisation features as needed while paying only for what they use.
The result is a variable cost model that directly links technology investment to business outcomes and supports mass customisation without large upfront capital expenditure. Asset managers who adopt this approach can respond faster to client needs and maintain a lean, future-ready operating model.
Move toward front-line investment
Begin conversations that reallocate resources and attention toward data initiatives in the front and middle office. This requires addressing both workforce and technical challenges.
“Team members often lack the skills to interpret and leverage data analytics effectively, limiting the actionability of available data,” Kabir said. “Investor-facing teams are stretched thin, juggling multiple responsibilities, which limits their ability to focus on data-driven projects.”
Additionally, a lack of coordination between teams — IR, distribution, ESG, compliance — leads to inefficiencies and missed opportunities. A culture of competition, secrecy or reliance on traditional methods can discourage adoption of new data-driven approaches.
To address these challenges, firms need candid internal conversations to address skill gaps and develop plans to fill key data leadership roles.
Senior leaders must lift barriers to data access and create a democratised ecosystem that enables shared services across the organisation. In the UAE, upskilling teams in data analytics and fostering cross-functional collaboration are key priorities, supported by Emiratisation initiatives and a diverse talent pool.
“On the technical side,” said Samer, “organisations need to look inward at data capabilities and be honest about what their data strategy ‘North Star’ needs to be. If there are true technical challenges to obtaining, managing and governing data, then investments in those technical capabilities need to be unlocked through internal or external channels.”
Anchor each project to clear business goals and track the right metrics
Champion high-impact, cross-functional data initiatives that tie to business outcomes with measurable ROI, including a variety of KPIs.
For the front office, Samer stressed the importance of aligning sales targets with firm-wide objectives: “It’s extremely important that the strategic goals of the company are aligned with the tactical goals of the sales teams, and those metrics can be pulled from finance or CRM. The operating model is the key part — you need to get the plumbing right.”
When goals cascade this way, salespeople aren’t just chasing quotas; they’re contributing to revenue that aligns with the organisation’s overall strategy.
“It’s even more crucial that strategic goals filter down to individual performance,” Samer said. "This cascading of objectives stops salespeople from just delivering numbers and focuses them on meeting strategic goals that deliver long-term organisational objectives.”
Ultimately, meaningful change only happens when business objectives are clear and both firm and technology leaders are jointly accountable for results. Success is defined by shared ownership and a unified vision of what progress looks like.
Conclusion
Data’s real power emerges when it informs the dialogue that wins and grows capital. Across the UAE, wealth and asset managers who connect information to every investor touchpoint — while adjusting the operating model and aligning to the organisation’s strategy without having to overhaul legacy systems — will capture new investor interest and grow AUM with existing relationships into the future.