Interesting perspective that the mainstream Western News has missed. 

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — “Dubai is the most Iranian of cities,” said Mohammed Reza, an Iranian expatriate who has lived in the Gulf emirate across the waters from the Islamic republic since 1998.

According to the Iranian consulate in Dubai, at least 400,000 of the UAE’s 4.1 million residents are Iranian.

The numbers have almost doubled since 2003. Iran’s status as an international pariah, which has increased since President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s election in 2005, has forced many nationals overseas.

Source: Dubai becomes Iran’s business hub – Business – Middle East Times

The reason is quite rational.

Heavy taxation and the difficulty of acquiring letters of credit have given businessmen few options but to seek opportunities elsewhere.
“If an Iranian company deals with European companies, the European side is always more comfortable dealing with a Dubai-based company as the rules and regulations are not volatile like in Iran,” said Mohammed Safavi, general manager at trading firm The Link.