The stock exchange run by the Dubai International Financial Centre is working to attract mainland companies to list in the Gulf emirate, and the center's investment arm could spend billions of US dollars in China this year, according to a senior official.

"We're going to explore how we can bridge liquidity of the Middle East to Chinese companies and, at the same time, give them a platform to penetrate the region," DIFC governor Omar bin Sulaiman said on the sidelines of a conference in Singapore.

Arab investors are keen to pour more money into China, according to Sulaiman.
"We've invested in different areas, including China, but it's not at the level where it should be," he said.

Sulaiman will visit the mainland in May to talk with government officials about building institutional ties between the Dubai International Financial Exchange and Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (0388) or mainland bourses, and he will also hunt for direct investments in China.

"I am going next month on a road show to China, visiting different cities, meeting with the exchanges, meeting with different regulators ... to explore what are the opportunities we can form together," Sulaiman said. "The dialogue exists on a certain level, but we're taking it to the next level."

DIFC is designed to become the global hub for Islamic finance.

The current market for Islamic financial products is estimated at more than of US$260 billion (HK$2.03 trillion) and is forecast to grow at 12 to 15 per
cent annually over the next decade.

DIFC Investments - the holding company that serves as the center's investment arm - has billions of US dollars available for investments, Sulaiman said.

Sulaiman will be looking for opportunities during his China visit. He said DIFC is most interested in taking stakes in Chinese companies that are involved in financial services, development of cities or cluster building. DIFC Investments recently took a 3.48 percent stake in Euronext, the Paris-based European cross-border exchange, which is the world's fifth-largest.
Sulaiman said DIFC is also looking to take a strategic stake in an Asian bourse.