Exclusive Banking & Finance Mena is Binance’s fastest growing region for institutional investors Binance reported a 34 percent rise in the number of new Middle East and North Africa institutional investors adopting its cryptocurrency technology during the last quarter of 2022, the highest growth of all regions. The world’s largest crypto exchange attributed the results to strong appetite for digital banking and financial solutions in the region. This […] January 20, 2023
Energy Global oil demand to reach record high this year, IEA says Global oil demand is forecast to hit an all-time high in 2023 as China relaxes its Covid restrictions, potentially pushing up prices in the second half of this year, according to the latest report from the International Energy Agency (IEA). The IEA said global oil demand is set to rise by 1.9 million barrels per […] January 18, 2023
Analysis Banking & Finance Rise of UAE foundations as wealth management sector matures The UAE’s richest people are increasingly setting up foundations to structure and preserve their wealth for the future. Regional wealth managers told AGBI they have noticed a “significant increase” in the number of foundations being established in the UAE, and in the volume of enquiries they are receiving about setting one up. Bradley Moran, an […] January 18, 2023
Energy UAE-UK Business Council unveils blueprint for energy transition The UAE and UK must step up co-operation on clean energy if they are to meet their decarbonisation targets, the UAE-UK Business Council has said. The council’s energy transition white paper, published on January 17, said there was “an untapped commercial opportunity to be exploited from closer collaboration between both countries in terms of developing […] January 17, 2023
Real Estate Momentum gathers on Dubai mega-projects Rising property prices and demand from wealthy buyers is encouraging Dubai to accelerate plans for several high profile projects that could represent the biggest real estate investment opportunities in the emirate in years. Among the key opportunities are fresh plans for a 300-acre plot once intended to house a 22 million square foot mega-project known […] January 13, 2023
Aviation Emirates resumes Tokyo flights as UAE and Japan deepen ties Emirates said on Thursday it will resume flights to Tokyo-Haneda airport from April 2, after a three-year hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic. Dubai’s flag carrier said the service will be operated by one of its Boeing 777 Game Changer aircraft, with the outbound flight EK312 departing Dubai at 07.50 and arriving in Haneda at […] January 12, 2023
Banking & Finance New investor app taps Gulf’s appetite for stocks and shares InvestSky, a social investing platform, has raised $3.4 million in a pre-seed funding round led by venture capital fund Emkan Capital. The Dubai startup aims to use the cash to make investing more inclusive for a “new generation of investors in the GCC”, it said. InvestSky’s commission-free platform is aimed at retail investors – non-professional […] January 12, 2023
Analysis Sustainability Gulf’s sustainability consulting market set to hit $1.3bn by 2025 Middle Eastern companies are calling in expert advisers to help them improve their environmental performance and analyse carbon-tracking and other sustainability indicators. As national carbon reduction policies roll out across the Gulf, the region’s market for sustainability consulting is forecast to grow by 10 percent each year between now and 2025, according to a report […] January 11, 2023
Banking & Finance Mena to host first IPO summit with listings in high demand The Middle East’s first IPO-focused summit will take place in Dubai later this month after recent listings in the emirate proved a huge draw for international investors. Dubai Financial Market and the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) have partnered to host the Mena IPO Summit – Dubai, which aims to unite the entire IPO value […] January 9, 2023
Analysis Economy Dubai’s $8.7trn plan hailed as ‘latest step in economic evolution’ The ruler of Dubai on Wednesday launched a strategy to double foreign trade and investment over the next decade and boost the emirate’s position among global financial centres. The AED32 trillion ($8.7 trillion) Dubai Economic Agenda, known as D33, includes 100 “transformative” projects to increase foreign trade to AED25.6 trillion by 2033, from AED14.2 trillion […] January 5, 2023
Exclusive Banking & Finance UK fintech Total Processing to expand to Saudi and Egypt Online payments firm Total Processing plans to start operating in Saudi Arabia by the middle of 2023 and then in Egypt, after achieving 30 percent month-on-month revenue growth since it launched in Dubai in 2021. The company, headquartered in the UK, has witnessed strong growth in the Mena e-payments sector as e-commerce booms and governments […] January 3, 2023
Saudi courts world’s universities to meet rising demand Rapid population growth, changing workforce needs and a preference for citizens to study in their own country is fuelling demand for higher education places in Saudi Arabia. A total of 2.8 million seats are needed by 2030, according to research by consultancy Colliers. The figure represents a 42 percent increase, or 900,000 additional places over […] December 30, 2022
Exclusive Construction Caribbean carbon-negative concrete set for Saudi projects Bahamas-based startup Partanna is finalising the terms of its first commercial partnership in the Middle East – a tie-up with the developer responsible for two of Saudi Arabia’s flagship giga-projects, Red Sea and Amaala. A joint venture is expected to be signed with Red Sea Global (RSG) early next year, according to Rick Fox, co-founder […] December 22, 2022
Analysis Construction Dubai investors scramble for prime development plots Dubai’s dwindling number of prime development sites is keeping prices high and competition fierce in this segment of the emirate’s property market. Waterside plots connected to existing infrastructure are in especially short supply, experts have said. Earlier this month an undisclosed Dubai-based developer bought three adjoining plots spanning 1.7 million sq ft in Dubai Marina […] December 20, 2022
Exclusive Construction Dubai brokers compete to sell Palm Jebel Ali homes Dubai real estate agents are signing up to sell homes when developer Nakheel relaunches the Palm Jebel Ali manmade island development in the first quarter of next year. Industry sources told AGBI the project, which was launched in 2002 but has been on hold since 2008, is set to start construction soon after the official […] December 16, 2022
Economy Oil and gas lift Qatar’s budget surplus past $8bn in Q3 Qatar posted a budget surplus of QR30 billion ($8.2 billion) in the third quarter of 2022, according to its Ministry of Finance. Revenues for the quarter stood at QR81.8 billion and 93 percent of the total – QR76.3 billion – came from oil and gas, the ministry announced on Tuesday, via the state-run Qatar News […] December 13, 2022
Construction Sheikh Mohammed reveals phase 2 of Dubai 2040 plan Agricultural industry, heritage preservation and the “20-minute city” concept are key planks of the second phase of the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan, the government said on Monday. The plan – whose first phase was published in March 2021 – sets out a strategy for Dubai’s urban development over the next two decades. It is […] December 13, 2022
Exclusive Retail Cenomi in bid to shake up kingdom’s online retail industry The retail behemoth previously known as Fawaz Alhokair Group is overhauling its operations from being predominantly bricks and mortar-based to one of the region’s biggest online marketplaces. “Over the past three decades, we’ve done a fantastic job at making the business what it is today, but we know there is a lot more to be […] December 9, 2022
Energy Morocco mulls hydrogen energy deal with Asia’s richest man Morocco is ramping up plans to become a major producer and exporter of green hydrogen, and the investment deals reportedly on the table include with Indian billionaire Gautam Adani. Named as Asia’s richest person, Adani is the chairman and founder of Adani Group, a multinational conglomerate with interests spanning the port development, industrial, logistics, and […] December 8, 2022
Banking & Finance Saudi firms partner to boost SME involvement in supply chains Banque Saudi Fransi has formed a tie-up with Saudi Aramco-backed fintech firm Lamaa pledging to develop products and services to aid supply chain management and cut costs. Under a memorandum of understanding signed on Wednesday, the two companies agreed to collaborate to develop, evaluate and launch “supply chain solutions” that will streamline the process for […] December 7, 2022
Analysis Energy Adnoc chasing global growth with latest venture Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) is creating a dedicated unit for low carbon solutions and international business. It is an attempt to monetise the decarbonisation strategy mandated to it by its board and the wider UAE government. But the company must ensure that any future overseas work does not cannibalise that of the Abu […] December 7, 2022
Banking & Finance MAF clinches $1.25bn sustainability-linked loan UAE-based retail group Majid Al Futtaim (MAF) has secured its second sustainability-linked loan as part of its strategy to become ‘net carbon positive’ by 2040. The $1.25 billion-equivalent revolving credit facility with First Abu Dhabi Bank was agreed on Monday. MAF, which owns and operates 29 shopping malls across the Middle East and Africa as […] December 5, 2022
