But he said Dubai would concentrate on small gold bars, mainly used by jewellery manufacturers, while London would remain the international hub for large bars.
"Dubai Good Delivery is not trying to undercut London in the market. It is an entirely different approach," he told Reuters on the sidelines of a gold conference in Dubai, a regional trading hub in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates.
He said customers in the Dubai bullion market were mainly jewellery manufacturers buying small quantities, while the main players in the London market were central banks, mining firms and institutional investors. He declined to give quantities.
The Dubai government wants to establish the city as a modern gold hub, and is building Dubai Metals and Commodities Centre as a base for regulating production and trade of physical gold, diamonds and other commodities, as well as a futures exchange.
Dubai has a long history as a gold trading centre, particularly as a transhipment hub for gold bound for India, the world's largest gold consuming nation.
Most of this trade passes through Dubai's gold souk, or market -- an informal, self-regulated network of several hundred small and medium-sized jewellery traders. The government wants to formalise the industry.
"Dubai is already a major centre for distribution of gold jewellery. I see Dubai growing above all as a jewellery centre," said Murray. "It does seem to us in London that they are developing a robust system."
He said the emirate needs to create strong regulations if the international industry is to accept it as a global hub, but warned that "excessive regulation can stifle markets".
Murray said none of Dubai's refiners were registered under the London Good Delivery system, but added: "I would be very surprised if in five years time we don't have some."