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Binance helped Iranian firms trade $8bn despite sanctions

Crypto giant Binance has processed Iranian transactions with a value of $8 billion since 2018 despite US sanctions intended to cut Iran off from the global financial system, blockchain data show. Almost all the funds, some $7.8 billion, flowed between Binance and Iran’s largest crypto exchange, Nobitex, according to a review of data from leading […]

Waterfront, Water, Person

S&P upgrades Qatar’s credit rating on shrinking debt burden

Ratings agency S&P on Friday raised Qatar’s long-term sovereign credit rating to ‘AA’ from ‘AA-‘, citing improvements in the government’s fiscal position. “Qatar’s debt interest costs as a share of government revenue have fallen, and we expect them to remain low because the government is repaying maturing debt,” the agency said in a statement. High […]

Lebanon banking crisis

IMF recommends Turkey to implement early policy rate hikes

Turkey should tighten monetary policy and give its central bank more independence, a mission from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Friday. “To address (Turkey’s) challenges, the mission recommended early policy rate hikes accompanied by moves to strengthen the central bank’s independence,” said the IMF in a press release. “Such moves would help reduce […]

Text, Phone, Electronics

Erdogan may discuss charge for Twitter blue check with Elon Musk

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said he may negotiate with Twitter’s new boss Elon Musk to avoid paying the monthly $8 charge for the “verified” badge. After buying Twitter for $44 billion last week, Musk said the company will charge $8 a month for its Blue service, which includes the sought-after blue check mark. In an […]

Person, Human, Market

Turkey’s inflation hits 24-year high of 85.5% after rate cuts

Turkish annual inflation climbed to a new 24-year high of 85.51 percent in October, official data showed on Thursday, slightly below forecast, after the central bank cut its policy rate despite surging prices. Inflation has surged since last year, when the lira slumped after the central bank began cutting its policy rate in an easing […]

Lebanon steps back from plan to slash official exchange rate

Lebanon has stepped back from plans to slash its 25-year-old official exchange rate with one closer to the market rate, ministerial and political sources said Thursday, amid fears of a backlash from the public. Caretaker finance minister Youssef Khalil told Reuters on September 28 the state would re-peg the dollar from 1,507 to 15,000 pounds […]

Emirates suspends Nigerian flights again over trapped ticket sales

Dubai’s Emirates has suspended flights to Nigeria for the second time since September citing an inability to repatriate funds from Africa’s biggest economy, the airline said on Thursday. Nigeria is facing severe dollar shortages, forcing many citizens and business to seek forex on the black market, where the naira currency has progressively weakened. An Emirates […]

City, Office Building, Building

Saudi’s PIF sets up electric car joint venture with Foxconn

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth Public Investment Fund (PIF) said on Thursday it will make electric cars in the kingdom under a joint venture with Apple supplier Foxconn as part of a push to build new industries and lessen dependence on oil. Ceer “is the first Saudi automotive brand to produce electric vehicles in Saudi Arabia, […]

Moody’s upgrades Qatar outlook on higher energy prices

Ratings agency Moody’s has upgraded Qatar’s credit outlook to positive from stable, citing higher energy prices expected to bring significant budget surpluses that will help the Gulf state to manage its medium-term debt profile. Qatar, which hosts the 2022 FIFA World Cup this month, is one of the world’s largest exporters of natural gas and […]

Hat, Clothing, Person

Bank of England readies for biggest rate rise since 1989

The Bank of England (BoE) looks on track to raise interest rates by three quarters of a percentage point to three percent later on Thursday, its biggest rate rise since 1989 as it battles the highest inflation in 40 years. The BoE has faced political and financial market turmoil since its last rate rise on […]

Israel-backed Ithaca Energy set for London’s biggest IPO in 2022

Ithaca Energy’s plans to launch an initial public offering (IPO) on the London Stock Exchange next week could value the North Sea oil and gas producer at up to 3.1 billion pounds, making it London’s largest IPO this year. Shares in the company – owned by Tel Aviv-listed Delek Group – are being offered at […]

Dubai’s Empower shareholders mull raising IPO stake to 20%

Shareholders of Dubai’s Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation (Empower) are considering increasing the size of the stake in the company being offered in an initial public offering to 20 percent, two sources said on Wednesday. They increased it to 15 percent from 10 percent on Tuesday, citing strong demand. The Gulf if experiencing an IPO […]

People, Person, Parliament

Kuwait to use budget surplus to replenish fund to cover deficits

Kuwait will use an expected budget surplus for fiscal year ending March 31, 2023 to replenish its general reserve fund (GRF), its finance minister said, after running down the GRF during the COVID-19 pandemic when oil prices dropped. The oil-producing Gulf state’s parliament on Tuesday approved the 2022/2023 government budget after a delay caused by […]

Building, City, Town

Gulf central banks raise interest rates after US Fed’s move

Most Gulf states said on Wednesday they would increase their key interest rates after the Federal Reserve raised its key policy rate by three-quarters of a percentage point for the fourth straight time. While the US central bank’s policy decision was motivated by its desire to lower stubbornly high inflation in the United States, it […]

Food, Snack, Fries

KFC’s Mena franchisee to offer 30% stake in GCC dual listings

Americana Restaurants, the Middle East and North Africa franchisee of fast-food restaurants KFC and Pizza Hut, said it planned to launch an initial public offering (IPO), followed by a dual listing in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Adeptio Investments, an investment vehicle jointly-held by Dubai businessman and founder of Emaar Properties Mohammed Alabbar […]

Window, Silhouette, Architecture

More Twitter officials leave after Elon Musk’s $44bn takeover

In an expanding exodus of Twitter’s top management, officials including its advertising and marketing chiefs left the company in the past few days, according to statements and a person with direct knowledge of the matter. The departures come after billionaire Elon Musk’s $44 billion takeover of the company last week, followed by his firing of […]

Gap between Egypt’s official and black market dollar prices shrink

The gap between the official and black market price of dollars in Egypt has narrowed significantly since the central bank announced a flexible exchange rate policy, three parallel market traders told Reuters on Tuesday. The Egyptian pound was trading at 24.15 to the dollar on Tuesday, according to Refinitiv data. That is about 18.5 percent […]

Airplane, Aircraft, Vehicle

Emirates expects to restore full schedule to South Africa by May

Dubai’s Emirates airline is hoping to resume all of its 49 flights per week to South Africa by May next year, an executive said on Tuesday, as demand for international travel recovers with the easing of COVID-related curbs. The airline in September announced additional flights, with three daily flights to and from Johannesburg from March […]

Saudi Arabia plans to award over dozen mining exploration licences

Saudi Arabia plans to award over a dozen mining exploration licences to international investors as it looks to enter the mining sector in a big way to diversify away from hydrocarbons, mining minister Bandar Al-Khorayef said on Wednesday. Five new exploration sites are up for licensing and the kingdom will release details of an additional […]

Dubai’s Empower increases IPO size by 50% on strong demand

Shareholders in Dubai’s Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation (Empower) have increased the size of the stake being offered in an initial public offering (IPO) to 15 percent from 10 percent, citing strong demand for the shares. Empower said in a statement its two shareholders Dubai Electricity and Water Authority and Emirates Power Investment had exercised […]

Money, Dollar, Snake

Kuwait’s Wafra raises $1.5bn to buy stakes in private equity firms

Wafra Inc, an investment firm backed by Kuwait’s public pension fund, said on Monday it has raised $1.5 billion for its fourth flagship fund that will acquire minority stakes in alternative asset managers such as private equity firms. The new fund, Capital Generation IV, will seek to acquire minority stakes in “lower middle-market” firms with […]