GEMS Education, one of the world’s largest private school operators, plans to launch a school for the uber-rich in Abu Dhabi after opening the UAE’s most expensive school in Dubai this year, as the Emirates becomes a magnet for the world’s super-wealthy.
Dino Varkey, chief executive of GEMS Education, said at the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh that the “significant reallocation of high-income families” into the UAE is a “very prevalent trend”, which supports the case for another educational institution for this fast-growing segment of the population.
Dubai’s Most Expensive School
Dubai-based GEMS announced the launch of GEMS School of Research and Innovation in Dubai Sports City in January. The $100-million campus, featuring an elevated football field doubling as a helipad, a 600-seat auditorium, and an Olympic-size swimming pool, opened for the 2025–26 academic year.
Fees at SRI in Dubai range from Dh116,000 ($31,586) for pupils in foundation stage one to Dh206,000 in year 12, making it the most expensive kindergarten to grade-12 school in the country. Mr Varkey described the launch as a “consequence” of Dubai’s robust economic growth and the rising migration of super-wealthy families to the Emirates.
Abu Dhabi as a Strategic Market
Mr Varkey said,
“Abu Dhabi benefits largely from the same fundamentals that are driving Dubai’s economic growth, so it would certainly be a market that we would look at for a flagship SRI school.”
GEMS has historically catered to affluent families and dual-income households, which Mr Varkey called their “premium segment”. He added,
“But is there a new catchment of what you would think of as uber affluent families that are relocating to the country? Yes. That’s where I think the GEMS School for Research and Innovation is the new flagship of the portfolio.”
UAE Millionaire Boom
Measures to attract foreign investment, combined with the UAE’s position as a gateway to the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia, have drawn entrepreneurs, high-net-worth individuals, and family offices.
The UAE is expected to attract a record 9,800 relocating millionaires in 2025, according to Henley & Partners and New World Wealth. Dubai alone is home to an estimated 81,200 millionaires and 20 billionaires.
This influx has led global financial institutions, private banks, and asset managers to relocate staff, further boosting the number of high-income households in the country. Personal financial assets in the UAE have grown more than 20 per cent annually over the past three years, reaching over $700 billion, according to HSBC.
Growth Ambitions for GEMS
GEMS Education plans to expand SRI as a flagship brand in the UAE and beyond but maintains its broader portfolio growth strategy. Mr Varkey said,
“It is catering to a slightly newer segment, but the broader mix of our growth aspirations, I don’t think that’s necessarily changed.”
The company is on track to increase student capacity by 30,000 to 35,000 seats in the UAE. Admissions have risen by five per cent and revenue by 10 per cent post-pandemic. GEMS forecasts enrolment could reach 175,000 to 180,000 students in the next two to three years.
Regional and Global Expansion
While most of GEMS’ schools are concentrated in the UAE, followed by Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UK, and Switzerland, the company is exploring adjacent markets such as Saudi Arabia and South-east Asia, including Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia.
Mr Varkey did not rule out mergers and acquisitions as part of expansion, stating,
“To look at acquiring school groups or network of schools is certainly an avenue that’s always open to us.”
Financial Strength and Shareholder Plans
GEMS is well-capitalised and plans to fund expansion from its own balance sheet. A Brookfield Asset Management-led consortium invested in GEMS in 2024, along with a $3.25 billion financing facility led by Dubai Islamic Bank.
Potential initial public offerings are tied to shareholder rotation cycles, which typically occur every five years. Mr Varkey added,
“Every single time you consider a shareholder rotation, you naturally need to consider a public markets pathway. It’s just one of the options that you always have to evaluate.”
For more information please visit:
Further Reading:
- GEMS Education Unveils GEMS School Management – A Turnkey Solution to Build World-Class Schools Globally
- Reimagining Education: Why The GEMS School of Research and Innovation Is So Unique