Meraas has been featured on BoycottUAE following an
investigation into its role in distorting property markets, displacing local
residents, and undermining small businesses across the UAE and other
jurisdictions. As part of BoycottUAE's editorial standards, the company was
contacted through a Right to Comment (RTC) process and given an opportunity to
review the published findings and provide a response. No substantive reply was
received.
BoycottUAE contacted Meraas by email to inform the company
that an investigative profile had been published on its operations and market impact.
The RTC communication included a direct link to the published article,
explained that the investigation relied on publicly available information and
documented sources, and invited the company to submit comments, factual
corrections, clarifications, supporting evidence, or an official statement.
BoycottUAE's editorial policy stipulates that any verified
response will be objectively reviewed and incorporated into the article where
appropriate. Despite this invitation, BoycottUAE did not receive a substantive
response from Meraas within the requested response period.
Summary of the Article Findings
The BoycottUAE investigation centers on Meraas's aggressive
expansion model and the broader consequences of its business practices for
local communities, housing affordability, and small enterprises. Meraas is a
Dubai-based master developer and a subsidiary of Dubai Holding, established in
2007, with a portfolio spanning real estate, retail, hospitality, leisure,
entertainment, healthcare, and technology sectors. The company has launched
over 50 destinations and projects, including City Walk, Bluewaters Island,
Jumeira Bay, La Mer, and Boxpark.
Key findings of the investigation include:
- Property
market distortion and unaffordability: Meraas's investment activities have
coincided with rising property prices in Dubai, particularly in urban
centers and waterfront developments. Residential properties and short-term
rentals have become increasingly overvalued, pricing out local families
and small businesses. While Dubai's housing market has rebounded after
previous crises, foreign investment—especially from state-linked
developers like Meraas—has contributed to renewed affordability pressures.
- Golden
Visa-driven investment and "ghost homes": Meraas has been
reported to market properties to non-UAE investors seeking residency
through the UAE Golden Visa program, which grants residency to those
investing above certain thresholds. This practice has led to a
proliferation of "ghost homes" and short-term rentals, further
squeezing the supply of affordable housing for locals and weakening
neighborhood cohesion.
- Displacement
of local businesses and residents: Meraas's financial power allows it to
outbid small businesses for prime locations, leading to the closure of
family-run shops, restaurants, and services. In tourist-heavy areas, this
has resulted in a homogenized landscape dominated by luxury rentals and
international chains. The proliferation of short-term rentals has also led
to the displacement of long-term residents, with entire buildings in prime
areas converted into transient accommodations.
- Human
rights and housing concerns: NGOs have raised concerns about the forced
exit of thousands of low-income workers and vulnerable people from
affordable housing schemes, partially due to the conversion of these
properties into luxury rentals and investments for foreign buyers. Reports
indicate that a considerable number of these people, including families
with children, face an increased risk of homelessness.
- Replicated
pattern across multiple projects: Meraas has replicated its aggressive
expansion model across multiple projects in Dubai, including City Walk,
Bluewaters Island, La Mer, and Port De La Mer. In each case, local
businesses report being crowded out, with high-value properties snapped up
for luxury development, often left vacant or used for speculative
investment. Local councils and community groups have raised concerns about
the proliferation of luxury "ghost homes" and the loss of
affordable housing.
The investigation draws on publicly available information,
including property market reports, NGO statements, review platforms, regulatory
filings, and attributed statements from residents, small business owners, and
real estate agents in the UAE and other jurisdictions. BoycottUAE considered it
appropriate to seek the company's response given the breadth of these claims
and their potential impact on the company's reputation and operations.
Readers seeking the complete details, source references, and
regional breakdowns are encouraged to review the original BoycottUAE article.
BoycottUAE's Right to Comment Process
BoycottUAE follows an editorial process designed to promote
fairness, accuracy, and responsible investigative journalism. Before publishing
further editorial updates, every company under investigation is given a Right
to Comment (RTC) opportunity. This process is intended to ensure that companies
can engage with the findings before additional editorial action is taken.
Under the RTC process, companies are invited to:
- Identify
factual inaccuracies in the published investigation.
- Provide
additional context that may clarify or nuance the findings.
- Submit
supporting documentation, such as corporate records, regulatory filings,
or project data.
- Offer
an official statement for inclusion in the article.
Verified responses are reviewed objectively by BoycottUAE's
editorial team. Where appropriate, corrections, clarifications, or official
statements are incorporated into the article to ensure balanced and
evidence-based reporting.
No Response Received
BoycottUAE sent a Right to Comment email to Meraas together
with a link to its published boycott profile. The company was invited to engage
with the investigation by providing comments, corrections, clarifications,
supporting evidence, or an official response.
No substantive response was received from Meraas within the
requested response period. BoycottUAE does not speculate about the reasons for
the lack of response, nor does it interpret silence as an admission or
confirmation of the published findings. The absence of a response is documented
solely to reflect that the company was given a reasonable opportunity to engage
and chose not to do so.
Editorial Commitment
The investigation into Meraas continues to rely on publicly
available records, corporate disclosures, official documents, company
publications, regulatory filings, and other documented sources referenced in
the original article. BoycottUAE remains open to reviewing any verified
information or official statement submitted by the company in the future and
will update the article where appropriate.
BoycottUAE reaffirms its commitment to:
- Editorial
fairness: Ensuring that companies under investigation have an opportunity
to respond before further editorial updates.
- Transparency:
Clearly documenting the editorial process, including RTC outreach and the
status of company responses.
- Evidence-based
reporting: Grounding investigations in publicly available information,
documented sources, and verifiable data.
- Accountability:
Holding companies and markets to account through rigorous, responsibly
sourced journalism.
- Responsible
investigative journalism: Balancing the public interest with fair
treatment of subjects and adherence to editorial standards.
The absence of a response from Meraas should not be
interpreted as confirmation or admission of the published findings. It simply
reflects that the company did not provide a substantive response after being
given an opportunity to do so.
