Practice by city · November 2026
Banking & Finance in Dubai: lateral monitor
Lawyers who changed firm in Banking & Finance in Dubai over the last 12 months, set against the practice and the city as a whole.
The last 12 months: November 2025 to October 2026
- 28
- Lateral moves, 12 monthsNovember 2025 to October 2026
- +27.3%
- Year on yearSettled 12-month windows
- 39.3%
- Partner share of moves
- 66
- Lateral moves, three yearsThree years to October 2026
What the data show
From November 2025 to October 2026, Sartori & Partners recorded 28 lateral moves in Banking & Finance in Dubai, 1.4% of the practice's moves. On settled windows the count went from 22 to 28 (+27.3%), a change inside the noise of the two counts, so we read it as flat.
| Measure | Here | Banking & Finance | Dubai | Market |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Partner share of moves | 39.3% | 30.8% | 26.9% | 27.7% |
| Counsel share of moves (three years) | 9.1% | 11.4% | 10.8% | 12.1% |
| Associate share of moves | 53.6% | 55.8% | 62.0% | 58.5% |
| Moved up a level | 17.9% | 13.1% | 18.5% | 12.9% |
| Changed city | 38.5% | 20.4% | 30.1% | 20.5% |
| Hired by firms of 1,000+ lawyers | 71.4% | 63.8% | 72.9% | 53.6% |
| Year on year | flat (+27.3%) | rose (+14.1%) | flat (+17.7%) | rose (+9.0%) |
12 months to October 2026 unless the row says three years; a row switches to three years for every column when this page's 12-month value is not published. A dash is a value we do not publish. Flat means a change under 5% or inside the noise of the two counts.
Set against the Banking & Finance practice as a whole, the share who changed city stands out most: 38.5% here against 20.4%, above it. Against all moves in Dubai, the widest gap is the partner share, which is higher here: 39.3% against 26.9%. Year on year it held flat while the Banking & Finance practice as a whole rose.
Over the three years to October 2026, 66 lawyers moved in Banking & Finance in Dubai, 23 of them partners (34.8%). They joined 31 different firms. 18.2% stepped up a level on the move and 37.0% changed city, against 12.3% and 21.6% across the market over the same three years. 81.0% came from firms with 1,000+ lawyers.
- Partner39.3%
- Associate53.6%
At 39.3%, the partner share of arrivals sits above the market's 27.7%. A step up in title came with 17.9% of moves (market 12.9%).
- 1,000+ lawyers71.4%
- 400-999 lawyers17.9%
Firms in the 1,000+ lawyers class took 71.4% of arrivals, against 53.6% across the market.
- 1,000+ lawyers81.0%
- 400-999 lawyers11.1%
The practice accounts for 25.9% of all lateral moves in Dubai. Over the three years to October 2026, 51.5% of movers came from another firm in Dubai itself. A change of city came with 38.5% of moves (market 20.5%).
For a firm planning a hire in Banking & Finance in Dubai, a flat market means candidates are not being pulled by a wave: the case for a move has to come from the platform.
Deals in Banking & Finance in Dubai
Sartori & Partners data count 48 dated deals in Banking & Finance in Dubai in the 12 months to October 2026 and 144 over the three years to October 2026.
Banking & lending work is involved in 61.1% of them and Project & infrastructure finance in 13.9%.
By client industry, Banks & Financial Institutions comes first with 20.8%.
White & Case ranks first among advising firms over the period, in the 21-40 band.
| Rank | Firm | Deals (band) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | White & Case | 21-40 |
| 2 | Watson Farley & Williams | 11-20 |
| 3 | Latham & Watkins | 11-20 |
| 4 | Mayer Brown | 11-20 |
| 5 | Dentons | 11-20 |
| 6 | Clifford Chance | 11-20 |
| 7 | Trowers & Hamlins | 6-10 |
| 8 | Linklaters | 3-5 |
| 9 | Hogan Lovells Cadwalader | 3-5 |
| 10 | Freshfields | 3-5 |
Specialities in Banking & Finance in Dubai
Over the three years to October 2026, Islamic Finance was involved in 42.4% of moves in Banking & Finance in Dubai.
Related monitors and reports
Other practices in Dubai
Banking & Finance in other cities
Hiring in this market
Edition November 2026. Window: November 2025 to October 2026. Source: Sartori & Partners, from public law-firm announcements, firm websites and professional profiles, checked monthly. Methodology. Spot an error? [email protected].
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