Legal safeguards against market rumors in UAE securities: A comparative commercial law study

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Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
Market rumors distort price discovery and investor confidence, especially in high-velocity trading environments. This study evaluates how the UAE commercial and securities law protects transactions against market-moving rumors and compares the UAE’s approach with that of the US, UK, and EU. Using a doctrinal-comparative design, it analyzes statutes, exchange rules, supervisory guidance, and published actions (2019–2025). Illustrative enforcement items and operational timelines are also mapped (e.g., early-morning disclosure windows and short suspensions). UAE provisions prohibiting misleading statements/manipulation converge with international standards. Exchange operations create same-day rebuttal discipline (e.g., 09:00 disclosure with a 09:00–09:30 suspension lever if missed), while public sanctions have reached AED 5,000,000, alongside aggregate and individual penalties. Compared with benchmarks, the UAE exhibits faster initial issuer statements but less explicit safe harbors for rapid rebuttals and narrower private redress pathways. The framework materially aligns with leading jurisdictions. Codifying explicit rebuttal timelines, introducing calibrated safe harbors for good-faith rapid clarifications, and clarifying interfaces for private actions would improve predictability and investor outcomes without weakening administrative deterrence.

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    • Figure 1. Decision tree – When does a statement become a prohibited rumor?
    • Figure 2. Time strip – From rumor emergence to resolution
    • Figure 3. Comparative positioning map
    • Table 1. UAE legal and operational anchors governing rumor-related misconduct
    • Table 2. Illustrative UAE enforcement items (2019–2025) – Publicly reported
    • Table 3. Comparative matrix on definitions, rebuttal protocols, safe harbors, and private actions
    • Table 4. Issuer rumor-response checklist (operational)
    • Table 5. Investor Redress and Remedies by Jurisdiction (high-Level)
    • Conceptualization
      Ahmed Moustafa Aldabousi, Ibrahim Mohamed Shaker Ali
    • Data curation
      Ahmed Moustafa Aldabousi, Ibrahim Mohamed Shaker Ali
    • Formal Analysis
      Ahmed Moustafa Aldabousi
    • Investigation
      Ahmed Moustafa Aldabousi
    • Methodology
      Ahmed Moustafa Aldabousi, Ibrahim Mohamed Shaker Ali
    • Project administration
      Ahmed Moustafa Aldabousi
    • Resources
      Ahmed Moustafa Aldabousi
    • Supervision
      Ahmed Moustafa Aldabousi
    • Validation
      Ahmed Moustafa Aldabousi
    • Writing – original draft
      Ahmed Moustafa Aldabousi, Ibrahim Mohamed Shaker Ali
    • Writing – review & editing
      Ahmed Moustafa Aldabousi, Ibrahim Mohamed Shaker Ali