Wealth managers and hedge funds the world over have come to what is now dubbed the capital of capital for a myriad of reasons, but according to Philip Khinda, a US-trained lawyer and business advisor who moved recently to Abu Dhabi, it’s more than just the wealth of potential that pulls people there.

Each week, My Morning Routine looks at how a successful member of the community starts their day — and then throws in a couple of random business questions just for fun. This week, we speak to Khinda (LinkedIn) on what brought him to the capital, what he thinks sets the region apart, and his experience as a lawyer and the talent gap in the UAE. Edited excerpts from our conversation:

EnterpriseAM UAE: Assume this is our first sit-down and we’ve never met before. How would you introduce yourself to me?

Philip Khinda: My name is Philip Khinda and I lead Khinda Advisory, which is a strategic, regulatory, governance, and cross-border advisory practice operating between ADGM in Abu Dhabi and Washington, DC. I’m an American lawyer by training, though with experience throughout the world dealing with the regulatory and law enforcement landscapes in Europe, the US, and now the GCC.

I practiced at a Wall Street law firm for many years. I was also at the Securities and Exchange Commission, in the enforcement division, and before that was with Morgan Stanley in New York, so I’m trained in both finance and law.

I help companies, boards, asset managers, funds, and other institutions execute on their most challenging business objectives and high-stakes challenges. The focus is to bring clarity and sound judgment based on years of experience, to help them through what we in the field call special situations, whether transactional, regulatory, or governance-driven.

EnterpriseAM UAE: You’ve spent most of your career in the US. Why move to Abu Dhabi now?

PK: I think what the region has that sets it apart is that, much like my mother’s home country, Switzerland, it has a commitment to excellence, but there also is a great sense of ambition. As I’ve said to many people (then Ray Dalio said it himself in Abu Dhabi Finance Week), the region really feels like Silicon Valley in the ’90s.

There’s a sense of ambition, commitment, and — this is the most important part: investment, and I’m talking about investment in the long-term success of the region, financial and cultural. You see this long-term thinking in so many ways, and I’ll just use Abu Dhabi as an example — but whether it’s the frequent cultural pop-ups or the museums on Saadiyat, there’s so many things that make the city a desirable place for not just its citizens but people looking to invest, live, and work here.

I also think my American experience helps address a talent gap that exists in certain complex, high-stakes situations. There is a level of expertise that one gets working on major regulatory and enforcement matters in the US, and I’ve been doing that for decades. This is a region that appreciates best-in-class talent across disciplines

E: What’s different about the regulatory landscape here that you haven’t seen elsewhere?

PK: The leadership and regulatory environment here is extraordinarily forward-looking, especially when compared to the rest of the world. Europe often prioritizes precaution and complexity in regulation, sometimes at the expense of speed and flexibility, while the US has really been trying to streamline but it still carries a significant amount of institutional bureaucracy.

In the UAE, there was a rare opportunity to design systems intentionally, drawing on the best practices from around the world. There is a commitment to innovation, growth and capital formation that is — I believe — second to none.

E:Are there still misconceptions about the GCC and the Middle East among global investors and in finance circles?

PK: The average person walking around in the EU or the US doesn’t take the time to distinguish between what’s the Middle East and what’s the GCC, which can lead to some missed chances. But for the people who do know — and I would say the best companies and financiers in the world absolutely do know — are very aware of the system here, which relies heavily on personal contact, and trust and reliability that’s built and proven over time.

E:How do you organize your time between what I assume is a lot of in-person meetings and travel, and the other nitty-gritty aspects of the job?

PK: You might say that every day is different, but in many ways it’s the same. I may be in a different city, or I may have different timing with respect to my meetings and different locations, or different demands in terms of the situation — maybe it’s a meeting with a client, a regulator, what have you — but what’s the same, I often say, is “high stakes, low drama,” and bringing to bear calm, steady judgment.

For me, success in the end is those problems that never arise or just quietly go away. I am a passionate believer in the good, quiet result. The ability or willingness, and then the sensibility and seasoning, to handle these types of problems early on before they graduate into something that is egregious, expensive, and public is very important.

The core of my practice involves working directly with clients, their affiliates, their regulators, and their business partners, so it’s direct communications with all of those people.

E: And how do your mornings start?

PK: I’m a big fan of coffee and dates. I have those almost every morning. Plus: my wife and I always like to make sure we get some exercise and we eat right. We love the sun.

Most days, I exercise in the morning when I think through many of the strategic and other things that need to happen that day, and that sets the tone for all that follows, which is usually a series of calls, discussions, and meetings that all propel whatever business objective or strategic advantage a particular client might be seeking.

One of the advantages of being in this region is you feel like you wake up before the rest of the world. There’s a variety of things that I consume every morning. EnterpriseAM is one. I also read the Wall Street Journal, some local news outlets, X, and the like.

E: Give us a piece of advice that has stuck with you over the years.

PK: Never underestimate the power of creativity and force of will.

Philip’s recommendations

What he’s reading: Doris Kearns Goodwin’s Leadership in Turbulent Times.

Favorite place to eat: I enjoy spending time around Qasr Al Hosn, particularly during the Al Hosn Festival. It’s one of the best examples of how tradition and modern life coexist here — from Arabic coffee to contemporary cafés, and the sense of history that anchors it all.

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