Research anD Development Tax Credits (UK & Dubai)

Unlocking Value from Innovation: Key Takeaways from Our Women in Alliances Webinar on R&D Tax Relief

As part of our International Women’s Day webinar series, Women in Alliances brought together members from our London and Dubai chapters for a timely conversation on R&D tax relief and how businesses can unlock more value from innovation.

Hosted by Tina Valand, the session featured Robert Eves, Managing Director at PSS, and Danu Kumanan, Founder of AxiomFuse, who shared practical insights on how businesses in the UK and UAE can better understand, identify, and benefit from qualifying R&D activity.

The big takeaway

R&D tax relief is often misunderstood. It is not just for labs, scientists, or breakthrough inventions.

As Robert explained, it can apply to companies working on science- or technology-based projects that aim to create meaningful improvements, solve technical challenges, or move existing capabilities forward.

In other words, many businesses may already be doing qualifying work without realizing it.

Bringing it to life

One of the most valuable parts of the webinar was a real-world example from Danu, who shared how AxiomFuse helped build XK, a platform designed to simplify access to blockchain technology.

The project qualified not simply because it used emerging technology, but because it involved:

• solving technical uncertainty

• testing and iterating through failure

• building a more advanced and usable solution than what already existed

That distinction is important, especially for businesses working in AI, fintech, software, ERP, and digital transformation.

A big thank you to Tina Valand, Robert Eves, and Danu Kumanan for an insightful and highly practical session.