How do you set up the "billionaires' scheme" in Dubai?
It is often said on social media that billionaires use obscure, almost secret legal structures to protect their investments. The word “structure” itself reinforces this idea of complexity. It evokes interlocking arrangements, layered offshore companies, and incomprehensible schemes reserved for an elite.
In reality, it is much simpler, and setting it up in Dubai is possible with a reasonable budget.
In most cases, these structures rely on a few very conventional building blocks. Nothing exotic. Nothing mysterious. And above all, nothing conceptually inaccessible. They generally include five elements: a foundation, a holding company, an operating company, an “IP” company, and an “asset” company.
Taken separately, each of these elements is ordinary. It is their logical organization that provides the protection.
There are generally five elements
The foundation is used to structure long-term ownership. In practical terms, it becomes the group’s “ultimate owner.” The shares in the companies are no longer held directly by an individual, but by a dedicated entity with precise governance and succession rules.
The objective is clear: to separate ownership of the assets from personal uncertainties. Death, divorce, family conflicts, external pressure… the foundation provides an additional layer of stability. It establishes a long-term vision for the assets and prevents everything from resting on a single individual.
The holding company is a company that owns stakes in the other companies in the group. It does not sell anything to the public. It does not bill customers. It owns. That is its role.
It centralizes dividends, organizes financial flows between the entities, and makes it possible to manage the group as a whole. If a subsidiary is sold, for example, the transaction takes place at the holding company level. This avoids directly exposing operational or strategic assets.
The holding company is often perceived as a sophisticated structure. In reality, it is simply an organizational tool. It creates an intermediate layer between ultimate ownership (the foundation) and economic activities.
It is the entity that operates. It signs the contracts. It invoices the customers. It pays the suppliers. It employs the teams.
It is also the entity that takes on the business risks. If a dispute arises with a customer, if an activity fails, or if a market turns, the operating company is exposed. And that is precisely why the other assets should not be held within it.
The classic mistake made by less structured entrepreneurs is to concentrate everything in a single company: operations, intellectual property, cash, real estate, and investments. It is simple at first, but extremely risky.
The structures used by wealthy individuals are based on a very basic principle: do not put all assets in the same vehicle.
For this type of company, a Free-zone company or a Mainland company is appropriate depending on the activity (international or local). The cost starts at AED 18,000 per year.
The IP company owns intellectual property: trademarks, patents, software, concepts, content, and protected know-how. These are often the most valuable assets of a modern group.
Rather than leaving them in the operating company, they are isolated in a dedicated entity. The operating company then pays royalties to use these rights.
Why? Because if the operating business encounters a major problem, the intellectual property remains protected in another structure. It can be licensed to a new company, used in another way, or transferred without the entire structure collapsing.
An Offshore company in the UAE is often sufficient. Its cost is AED 9 200 per year.
Its role is to hold tangible or strategic assets: real estate, financial holdings, major equipment, and sometimes even surplus cash.
Here again, the logic is simple. If the operating company faces legal action or defaults, essential assets should not be seized or frozen along with it. They are held elsewhere.
Here too, an Offshore company in the Emirates is often sufficient.
It then becomes clear that what is presented as a “complicated arrangement” is in fact based on a principle of separation. Separate ownership. Separate operations. Separate strategic assets. Separate intellectual property.
Each entity has a clear function:
– The foundation organizes ownership;
– The holding company directs;
– The operating company works;
– The IP company protects the intangible assets;
– The asset company holds the tangible assets.
This is not a question of evasion or opacity. It is a question of architecture.
Billionaires do not invent extravagant structures. They rigorously apply risk management principles. They anticipate negative scenarios. They believe that an operational problem should not contaminate their entire wealth: the goal is to compartmentalize it. As on a ship. If one section starts taking on water, the boat does not sink.
Of course, each situation deserves a specific analysis. But in its simplest form, the logic remains the same: organize, isolate, protect.