African gold in the UAE: how the market works and how to trade it lawfully

Dubai sits at the center of Africa’s gold trade because it combines volume, services and onward markets in one place. The UAE imported 748 tonnes of gold from Africa in 2024, more than half of its gold imports, according to SWISSAID, using UN Comtrade data. The Dubai government estimates that 13–15% of the gold traded worldwide passes through the emirate each year (October 2026).

The UAE ranks second among physical gold hubs, though sources name different leaders. The Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) placed it after Switzerland in July 2025, and The National placed it after the United Kingdom in November 2025.

That scale draws scrutiny over undeclared gold, and the UAE has tightened its sourcing and anti-money laundering rules since 2022. For anyone who wants to invest in Africa’s gold chain from the Emirates, compliance now decides who can take part.

The figures show fast growth in value from 2023 to 2025, but different bodies measure different things.

What the figures measure

The import figures come from SWISSAID, a Swiss non-governmental organization: 1,392 tonnes worth USD 105.4 billion in 2024, with 748 tonnes from Africa, up 18% on 2023. The UAE’s 2024 data appeared on UN Comtrade on 31 October 2025 and was removed before SWISSAID published. The figures therefore rest on data that was public only briefly.

Official UAE figures measure the value of trade rather than imports. The UAE put gold traded in 2024 at about AED 683 billion (USD 186 billion), while DMCC gave nearly AED 625 billion (USD 170 billion) for precious metals as a whole, a different scope. Dubai’s 2025 figure comes from the emirate’s Higher Committee for the Development of the Economic and Financial Sector (October 2026).

What the figures miss

Declared figures miss smuggled gold. SWISSAID’s May 2024 report, “Tracking African Gold”, puts undeclared African gold reaching the UAE at about USD 115 billion over 2012–2022, and at about 405 tonnes in 2022 alone. The UAE government said at the time that it had taken “significant steps” against smuggling. This guide found no official UAE breakdown of gold imports by African country or by tonnage for 2024–2026.

Value also tracks price. The average gold price rose from USD 2,388 an ounce in 2024 to about USD 3,300 in 2025, according to a US Geological Survey (USGS) estimate. Gold set a record of USD 5,589.38 on 28 January 2026 (some trading sources cite an intraday peak near USD 5,595), then fell to about USD 3,880 on 30 October 2026, a one-year low.

Most of the gold leaves again. Switzerland imported 316 tonnes from the UAE in January–September 2025, nearly all imported by the refiner Valcambi, while UAE demand was 9.7 tonnes in the third quarter of 2025 (World Gold Council). The corridor figures set gold against wider UAE–Africa trade.

The UAE market rests on one large free zone, two bar standards, licensed refiners, an exchange and the retail souks.

DMCC and the bar standards

DMCC’s precious metals community spans miners, assayers, refiners, financiers, traders and jewelers. It owns an underground vault, and its Tradeflow registry records ownership of commodities stored in UAE facilities for Islamic finance and tokenized gold. Dubai’s role as a business base covers its other free zones.

DGD covers 1 kg bars of at least 995 fineness and served as the delivery standard for DGCX futures. UAEGD, launched in Abu Dhabi on 28 November 2021, is the national standard meant to replace it, based on guidance from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The UAE Bullion Market Committee runs it.

The UAEGD list of 27 August 2026 names nine gold refiners. Three are in the UAE (Al Etihad Gold FZCO, Emirates Gold FZCO and Sam Precious Metals FZ LLC), and the six abroad include Rand Refinery and Valcambi. The list does not show which members are active and which are under review.

Refiners, the exchange and the souk

DGCX’s most liquid precious metals product is a 1 kg Sharia-compliant physical gold contract, and its volumes rose 30% in 2025. Retail sits in the Dubai Gold Souk and in the Dubai Gold District, which Ithra Dubai launched on 27 January 2026 with more than 1,000 retailers. Dubai’s gold strategy of October 2026 sets six directions, from global trading and financing to storage, traceability, price discovery and retail demand.

The India channel

India is a second large outlet, through the UAE–India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), in force since 1 May 2022. India grants a 1 percentage-point duty concession on up to 200 tonnes of UAE gold a year (2025 terms). Bilateral gold trade grew from about USD 3 billion in 2022 to USD 17 billion in 2025, Reuters reported in April 2026.

India then tightened access. In May 2025 it limited imports of unwrought and semi-manufactured UAE gold to nominated agencies, qualified jewelers and quota holders, citing misuse and re-exports that failed CEPA’s 3% value-addition rule. In October 2025 it moved quota allocation to online bidding.

A lawful purchase runs from a licensed seller through assay, declared shipping and due diligence to a bank payment with a complete file. The reference is the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas (third edition, April 2016).

1. 1

   Step 1: Check the seller’s license and export permit

   Each origin country decides who may sell and export gold. In Ghana, the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) has been the sole exporter of gold from artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) since 1 May 2025. Foreign buyers may apply to take off gold from it directly. Uganda requires a trading, mining or refining license, and an origin-country export permit for imported gold (January 2026).

2. 2

   Step 2: Have the gold assayed and certified

   Use an assayer independent of the seller, or the state assayer where one exists, and ask for the purity certificate with the origin documents. Dubai Customs’ full document list for African gold could not be verified, so confirm it with the receiving refiner and your customs broker.

3. 3

   Step 3: Ship the gold as declared cargo

   Travelers entering or leaving the UAE must declare cash, precious metals or stones worth more than AED 60,000 (October 2023). The Afseh app of the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security accepts declarations. Insured freight with the export documents attached gives the refiner its paper trail.

4. 4

   Step 4: Pass the importer’s and the refiner’s due diligence

   UAE rules apply the OECD’s five steps: a management system, risk assessment, a risk response, an independent review and annual reporting. Under Ministerial Decree No. 68 of 2024, dealers apply steps 1 to 3, while refiners and recyclers apply all five. Prepare owners, origin, route and permits in advance, with the due diligence checklist for the corporate side.

5. 5

   Step 5: Pay by bank transfer and keep the file

   Pay the licensed seller’s own account and keep the invoice, purity certificate, both parties’ tax registration numbers, contract, transport documents and proof of payment. Since 2021, UAE dealers must report cash deals of AED 55,000 or more and keep records for at least five years.

Doré, refined bars and price

Doré is the semi-refined bar a mine produces, while refined bars carry a refiner’s stamp and meet a bar standard. From 1 July 2026 GoldBod buys 30% of large-scale miners’ output as doré at a 0.55% discount, paid in cedis. The doré is refined in Ghana, then stamped at a refinery accredited by the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA).

Refined gold is priced against London, and the gap moves with logistics: on 6–9 March 2026, flight disruptions left Dubai gold USD 10–30 an ounce below London. For doré, quality, transport and fees cut the price received. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) put the Bank of Ghana’s loss on its ASM doré program at about USD 214 million in 2025 through the third quarter; the bank called it speculative. No published range of UAE refining charges was found, so ask for a written schedule.

Selling in the UAE requires a licensed buyer, proof of purity and origin, a traceable payment and the right value added tax (VAT) treatment. Check that a refiner is on the current UAEGD list and that a dealer is licensed and not suspended. Expect questions on origin: the World Gold Council (WGC) said in November 2025 that bars outside the Gold Bar Integrity database it is building with LBMA will become harder to sell.

Under Ministry of Economy Circular No. 8 of 2021, dealers must identify you and report cash deals of AED 55,000 or more on goAML, the Financial Intelligence Unit’s system. With companies, wire transfers of that size are reported too. DMCC’s vault and Tradeflow let you store gold with registered title, but no published vault fees were found.

The table sets out VAT and duty at the time of writing:

The reverse charge comes from Cabinet Decision No. 25 of 2018, and the supplier stays liable unless it obtains the buyer’s written confirmation and verifies its tax number. Some secondary sources date the gold reverse charge to 2024, and DMCC calls bullion “VAT-exempt” rather than zero-rated; check both points with a tax adviser. The duty position rests on 2018 reports, with no later change found.

Four sets of rules apply to gold traded in or through the UAE: responsible sourcing, anti-money laundering, international listings and sanctions.

Responsible sourcing and dealer duties

The Ministry of Economy announced the Due Diligence Regulations for Responsible Sourcing of Gold on 21 July 2022, mandatory from January 2023. They cover refiners, importers, recyclers, mining businesses and dealers, in free zones and on the mainland, with fines of AED 50,000 to AED 5 million. Ministerial Decree No. 68 of 2024 extended the duties to dealers under ministry supervision, and in May 2026 the minister announced a new federal policy for the gold sector.

Federal Decree-Law No. 10 of 2025 on anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) took effect on 14 October 2025 and raised corporate fines to AED 5–100 million. Dealers must be licensed or registered, appoint a compliance officer, register on goAML, screen customers against sanctions lists and report qualifying transactions of AED 55,000 or more. In 2024, 32 refineries were suspended from 24 July to 24 October after inspections found 256 violations.

FATF, EU and LBMA status

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) kept the UAE on its grey list from 4 March 2022 to 23 February 2024. The European Union removed the UAE from its high-risk list with effect from 5 August 2025, and SWISSAID called in November 2025 for a return to the FATF grey list. The compliance section explains how banks treat these listings.

On 6 November 2020 LBMA warned 12 gold centers, including the UAE, that it might stop accredited refiners sourcing through centers below its standards. In July 2023 the UAE suspended Emirates Gold DMCC from the UAEGD list amid an investigation into alleged links between its owners and money launderers, and LBMA then suspended it too. An entity named Emirates Gold FZCO is on the August 2026 UAEGD list, and its status is unclear.

Sanctions cases

The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has named UAE-based companies in three Africa-linked gold cases, stated here as announced:

• March 2022: Alain Goetz, African Gold Refinery in Uganda and UAE companies including Agor DMCC, over gold from the DR Congo
• December 2024: 28 people and entities in a network led by Kamlesh Pattni, including UAE-based Precious Bullion DMCC; the UK designated Pattni the same day
• January 2025: Rapid Support Forces (RSF) leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo and seven UAE-registered companies; on 4 April 2025 the UAE said none held an active UAE license and opened its own investigation

The UAE said in November 2025 that Sudan-linked gold was 1.06% of the gold passing through the country in 2024. Western sanctions on Russian gold do not apply in the UAE, so buyers bound by US, UK or EU rules carry that exposure into their trades.

African gold reaches the UAE from industrial producers, artisanal fields and transit countries, and most origins changed their rules for buyers between 2023 and 2026. The table gives the latest figures found:

Ghana: GoldBod and local refining

Ghana moved small-scale gold into one state channel under the Ghana Gold Board Act (Act 1140), passed on 29 March 2025. In 2025 GoldBod exported 103,804 kg of small-scale gold, more than 72% to Dubai and the UAE and about 25% to India. Since 1 September 2026, self-financing aggregators must refine doré bought under offtake arrangements in Ghana before export, at one of four licensed refineries. The Ghana profile covers the wider economy.

Guinea and the Sahel

Guinea’s President announced the end of raw gold exports on 19 June 2026: all gold must be smelted and certified in Guinea, at the Nimba Gold Refinery, then still being installed. No enforcement timetable had been disclosed by 22 June 2026, so contracts for Guinean doré face a change of product and of counterparty.

Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have increased state control of gold, a shift covered under political risk. Mali’s 2023 code allows state and local stakes of up to 35% in new projects, and Barrick settled its dispute with the state for about USD 430 million on 24 November 2025. Burkina Faso moved five gold assets to the state vehicle SOPAMIB in June 2025 and opened its first national refinery on 28 September 2026.

Niger nationalized its only industrial gold mine in August 2025. In April it had signed a refinery joint venture with Dubai-based Suvarna Royal Gold Trading, led by Kamlesh Pattni, who has been under US and UK sanctions since December 2024.

Sudan, the DR Congo and transit routes

Sudan’s army and the RSF have been at war since April 2023, and the US sanctioned the leaders of both sides in 2025. Official exports to the UAE fell from 22.2 tonnes in 2024 (99% of the total) to 8.2 tonnes in 2025 after Sudan cut ties in May 2025, and official data misses large unrecorded flows. SWISSAID’s count of 29 tonnes for 2024 comes from UAE import records, so the two series differ.

In the DR Congo, Primera Gold, a 2022 venture with a UAE partner, shipped about 5 tonnes to an Abu Dhabi refinery in its first year. The state bought out the partner in 2024, and its successor, DRC Gold Trading SA, targets up to 18 tonnes in 2026, mostly to Dubai.

SWISSAID reads large UAE imports from countries that produce little gold, such as Togo, as a sign of regional smuggling. The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) links Togo’s flows to transit artisanal gold from Burkina Faso and Niger. SWISSAID also names Chad and Libya as exit points for RSF-controlled gold.

Gold offers several ways of investing in Africa beyond buying bars, and UAE groups have already used some of them:

• Mining stakes: in February 2025 UAE-based Ambrosia Investment Holding agreed a deal of about USD 500 million with Allied Gold, including USD 375 million for 50% of its Mali operations. Middle East Eye has since reported that the deal “later fell apart”, which no second source confirms. The mining sector page covers other UAE miners.
• Gold-backed financing: in December 2024 UAE-based Fujairah Holdings agreed a USD 500 million forward purchase of gold from Asante Gold’s Bibiani mine in Ghana, with a USD 100 million advance. The holding structure decides how such a deal is taxed and protected.
• Refining: Ghana’s Gold Coast Refinery works with South Africa’s Rand Refinery, Burkina Faso’s refinery, opened in September 2026, has capacity of 164 tonnes a year, and Guinea is installing its own. Niger’s planned refinery belongs to a venture with a firm led by a sanctioned dealer, so check owners first.
• Formal artisanal supply: small-scale miners supplied about 75% of the 46.7 tonnes delivered to Zimbabwe’s state refinery in 2025. GoldBod accepts foreign offtakers, and DRC Gold Trading SA says firms from more than 40 countries have shown interest (January 2026).
• Logistics and vaulting: storage and traceability are two of the six directions in Dubai’s gold strategy, and the March 2026 flight disruptions raised one refiner’s logistics costs by 60–70%.

Seven risks recur when investing in Africa’s gold chain, and each has a known way to reduce it:

• Smuggling and under-declaration: SWISSAID estimates about 405 tonnes of undeclared African gold reached the UAE in 2022. Buy only from licensed exporters and match each export permit to the import declaration.
• Conflict gold: OFAC said in March 2022 that more than 90% of DR Congo gold is smuggled to regional states. Apply OECD enhanced due diligence and trace each lot to the mine.
• Fraud and fake gold: in July 2026 a Dubai court convicted nine people for selling gold-coated silver bars with forged certificates, and Dubai investors lost USD 54,000 in Kenya (2025) and about USD 4 million in Uganda (2026). Use an independent assay and pay only on delivery at a refinery.
• Price swings: gold fell about 30% from its January 2026 record to 30 October 2026. Fix the price at delivery and hedge open positions, for example with DGCX gold futures.
• Sudden rule changes: Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Tanzania and India changed gold rules between 2023 and 2026. Write change-of-law clauses and stage payments.
• Sanctions exposure: OFAC cases in 2022, 2024 and 2025 named UAE-registered firms. Screen every counterparty and its owners against UAE, UN, US, EU and UK lists.
• Banking de-risking: links to sanctioned networks or poorly documented origins put bank relationships at risk. Pay by transfer only and keep a complete due diligence file.

The answers below reflect the rules at the time of writing.