What are Governance and Compliance Services?
“For want of a nail, the shoe was lost.”
An old proverb. A current regulatory reality.
In the UAE regulatory landscape, it is rarely the big failures that cause the most damage. It is the missing mandate, the unclear approval, the committee that exists in name only. Governance, when neglected, does not collapse dramatically. It erodes.
Our Governance and Compliance services are designed to prevent that erosion.
This is the core of Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) services. The place where authority is defined, oversight is made visible, and regulatory expectations are translated into something that works inside an organisation.
Designed for the UAE, Not Imported Into It
Across the UAE, supervisory authorities expect governance and compliance frameworks that are deliberate, documented, and operational. Intent alone carries little weight. Regulators focus on how decisions are made, how responsibility is assigned, and how oversight is exercised in practice. Governance is assessed through evidence and tested during inspections.
That reality defines how effective Governance and Compliance Services must be delivered in this region.
This service is built for organisations that operate within the UAE’s regulatory environment, including:
Firms supervised by various supervisory authorities including DFSA, FSRA, or SCA
Virtual asset and digital asset businesses operating under heightened scrutiny
UAE Mainland and Free Zone companies transitioning into more mature regulatory models
Organisations balancing innovation with the need for regulatory certainty
Rather than relying on generic global templates, our Governance Services and Compliance Services are designed around UAE regulatory expectations. We develop Governance, Risk and Compliance frameworks that reflect local supervisory approaches, stand up to regulatory review, and work inside the business they are meant to govern.
Why Are Governance and Compliance Services Important?
In the UAE, regulations reward preparation and expose assumptions. Governance and compliance services in the UAE play a direct role in how regulators assess control, credibility, and readiness throughout the lifecycle of a regulated firm. When governance breaks down, more often, it comes from unclear accountability, frameworks that have fallen behind the organisation’s pace, or controls that exist neatly on paper but fail under scrutiny.
Governance and Compliance sit closest to regulatory judgment. They shape how decisions are made, how oversight is exercised, and how responsibility is demonstrated when regulators ask questions. In practice, they determine whether an organisation appears controlled, credible, and prepared, or reactive and disorganised.
When implemented properly, strong Governance and Compliance:
Protect board members and senior management from personal and regulatory exposure
Reduce friction during inspections, supervisory reviews, and regulatory engagement
Support faster licensing decisions and smoother approval processes
Build confidence with banks, counterparties, investors, and strategic partners
Introduce decision-making discipline as organisations grow in scale and complexity
Put simply, governance is what keeps an organisation steady as expectations rise and scrutiny intensifies. It keeps the wheels on when the road becomes uneven.
Our Governance and Compliance Services Infrastructure
We offer Governance Services and Compliance Services designed around how UAE regulators assess firms in practice.
Compliance Framework Setup
A compliance framework is the structure regulators expect to see before they look at anything else. It defines how regulatory obligations are identified, owned, implemented, and overseen across the business.
We design compliance frameworks that are proportionate to the firm’s licence, activities, and risk profile, while remaining aligned with UAE supervisory expectations. This includes:
- Establishing the compliance function and its mandate
- Defining roles, responsibilities, and escalation pathways
- Designing the annual compliance plan
- Setting the governance cadence for management and board oversight
The result is a framework that regulators can follow, management can operate, and boards can defend.
Compliance Monitoring
Monitoring is where compliance is no longer only theoretical. UAE regulators expect firms to demonstrate how they test adherence to regulatory obligations, not simply confirm that policies exist.
We establish structured compliance monitoring programmes that assess regulatory compliance across business activities, control functions, and outsourced arrangements. This includes:
- Risk-based monitoring plans
- Testing methodologies aligned with regulatory expectations
- Breach identification, assessment, and escalation protocols
- Clear reporting to senior management and the board
This ensures issues are identified early, escalated appropriately, and addressed before they become regulatory findings.
Compliance Calendar
Missed filings, delayed reviews, and overdue approvals are among the most common regulatory weaknesses identified in the UAE. A compliance calendar turns regulatory obligations into visible, trackable commitments.
We develop compliance calendars that capture licensing conditions, regulatory submissions, board approvals, periodic reviews, and ongoing obligations. This includes:
- Mapping regulatory obligations to business activities
- Assigning accountability for delivery
- Defining evidence requirements
- Maintaining the calendar as regulations and business models change
This brings discipline to regulatory execution and removes avoidable compliance risk.
Policy Management
Policies are not written for regulators. They are written for the business and judged by regulators. UAE authorities assess whether policies are current, applied, and understood, not whether they are well worded.
We support the development, review, and lifecycle management of compliance and governance policies, which include:
- Policy suite design and structure
- Document control and approval processes
- Regulatory and business alignment
- Periodic review and update cycles
The outcome is a policy framework that evolves with the business and remains defensible under scrutiny.
Board Reporting Packs
Board reporting is one of the clearest indicators of governance quality. Regulators routinely assess the content, clarity, and consistency of compliance reporting presented to boards and committees.
We design board and committee compliance reporting packs that provide meaningful insights, which include:
- Compliance dashboards
- Key Risk Indicators and Key Performance Indicators
- Breach and incident reporting
- Management and board attestations
This ensures boards receive the right information at the right time and can evidence effective oversight when required.
Integrity Is Proven in the Small Decisions
Strong Governance and Compliance Ensure Those Decisions Are Made Consistently and Responsibly
Sectors Where Governance, Risk, and Compliance Lives or Dies
Accountants and Auditors
Asset Managers & Investment Firms
DPMS
Insurance
Lawyers
Payments and Fintech
Real Estate
Securities & Brokerage
TCSPs
VASPs
When Governance and Compliance Break Under Pressure
Working across Virtual Asset Service Providers, DIFC and ADGM licensed firms, SCA-regulated entities, and UAE Mainland and Free Zone companies, the same governance and compliance weaknesses surface with striking consistency.
The differences are sectoral. The root causes are familiar.
VASPs
Governance frameworks are built for licensing rather than supervision. Compliance monitoring, transaction oversight, and escalation structures are underdeveloped, creating gaps across technology, operations, and compliance when AML, custody, or market conduct controls are tested.
DIFC Firms
Governance structures are present but misaligned. Overlapping committees, inherited mandates, and fragmented reporting obscure accountability during regulatory inspections.
ADGM Entities
Governance frameworks look sound on paper but lack operational evidence. Policies are understood, yet consistent execution, challenge, and oversight are difficult to demonstrate under supervision.
SCA-Regulated Firms
Compliance Services are stretched by regulatory change and transaction volume. Monitoring is inconsistent, breach handling is informal, and escalation occurs late in the supervisory cycle.
Mainland and Free Zone Companies
Governance Services are applied reactively. Structures evolve only once regulatory or banking pressure increases, leaving unclear accountability and urgent remediation.
Why GRC Advisory Services?
Clients choose GRC Advisors because we understand how regulators think, how businesses function and where theory breaks down.
- Deep UAE regulatory experience across multiple authorities
- Sector-specific governance expertise
- Practical frameworks that stand up in inspections
- Senior-led engagement, not junior experimentation
- Calm, credible and commercially aware advice
We help you build governance that does not creak under pressure.
Set the Order of Things
Discuss Your Current Governance and Compliance Framework and Its Alignment with UAE Regulatory Expectations