Forex Expo Dubai 2026 closed its ninth edition with another Guinness World Records title, which confirms the event’s place among the largest meeting points for the global forex and online trading industry. Held on September 22–23 at Dubai World Trade Centre, the expo welcomed 23,816 attendees — up from the previous record of 20,021 set in 2025.
For Drofa Comms, this year’s edition was also a chance to follow the industry’s priorities from inside the event.
Our team attended the event through Women Leading the Way, the Drofa Comms project and official media partner of Forex Expo Dubai 2026. Over the two days, we met clients and partners and followed discussions around trading technology, liquidity, payments, AI, regulation and leadership.
So, let’s take a look at what this event revealed about the direction the industry is going in our Forex Expo Dubai 2026 recap.
Forex Expo Dubai 2026 Sets a New Attendance Record
One of the most notable developments at Forex Expo Dubai 2026 was that the event has set a new Guinness World Record for attendance. This year, it recorded 17,536 visitors, including 2,898 traders, 850 introducing brokers, 795 affiliates and 1,737 business attendees. The exhibition also brought together 270 exhibitors and 150 speakers across five stages.
The first day alone drew more than 16,000 attendees, with the exhibition halls combining broker and technology showcases with conference sessions, meetings and dedicated spaces for traders, IBs and affiliates.
The scale of the event once again shows that the forex industry has long moved far beyond trading and investing alone. Today, events like Forex Expo Dubai regularly convene brokers, traders, liquidity providers, payment companies, technology vendors, marketers, PR firms and other service providers. All of them reflect how large the financial system has become.
AI, Liquidity and Stablecoin Payment Rails Take Centre Stage
Among the core topics discussed at the event, technology was one of the most recurring ones.
The conference included a dedicated AI panel examining pattern scanners, live sentiment tools and risk engines. All of this matters for how professional traders handle risk. Another session considered AI alongside trust and accountability. The focus was on using automation for analysis, execution and risk monitoring while keeping human judgment and oversight in the process.
Other than that, there were plenty of sessions about stablecoins, instant-payment systems and early CBDC projects. Participants and panellists examined the potential effect of these technologies on settlement, spreads and cross-border flows.
One of the fireside chats, “Beyond the Dollar: Building the Payment Rails for the Next Stablecoin Economy,” showed how stablecoins can simplify cross-border settlement. A traditional transfer from Dubai to Singapore could easily take several days as funds moved through correspondent banks, approvals and multiple intermediaries. With stablecoins, the process can be reduced to around 10 minutes. For brokers, PSPs and corporate treasuries, this means liquidity gets available much faster, so they can redeploy capital quicker.
Overall, the agenda showed that technology in forex is moving deeper into the industry’s core infrastructure. AI is being applied to trading and risk management, while stablecoins and new payment rails are being considered for settlement and cross-border transfers.
Maria Tunikova Discusses Trust and Leadership at Forex Expo Dubai 2026
A particular highlight for us was seeing our colleague, Maria Tunikova, take the stage at Forex Expo Dubai 2026. Maria moderated the fireside chat “Leading Finance Through Change: Building Influence, Trust and Long-Term Impact” with Roula Pelehrinis, Director of Institutional Sales at Kama Capital.
It was not Maria’s first moderating experience this month. Just two weeks earlier, she led the “Women Building Trust in Crypto” panel at Crypto Expo Dubai 2026, focusing on governance, security and market confidence.
This time, Maria and Roula discussed how to build trust and influence, maintain long-term relationships and make responsible decisions. After the event, Maria highlighted that even as markets move faster, regulation develops and technology changes how financial firms work, credibility and long-term relationships remain central to the business.
Roula, in her turn, pointed out that accountability, consistency, listening and the ability to remain calm when conditions become difficult are the fundamentals of strong leadership. In an industry that heavily focuses on numbers and performance, she says, people are who ultimately build business relationships.
So, new technology can improve execution, payments and analytics, but it does not replace credibility. This is especially true in financial communications, where trust is fragile. It is accumulated only through consistent actions, transparent messaging and relationships that weather the storm.
What Forex Expo Dubai 2026 Means for the Industry
This Forex Expo Dubai 2026 recap showcases that the sector is investing heavily in AI, smarter execution, new payment rails and more scalable brokerage infrastructure. At the same time, trust remains a commercial asset — in client relationships, partnerships, leadership and communications.
All of these factors are set to define how the industry develops from here. We will keep following them closely, taking part in events like this one, speaking with market participants and staying close to the developments shaping the sector.
