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Banking & Finance

Banking news and finance news from the Middle East. All the important stories, exclusive interviews, plus authoritative opinion and analysis

Banking & Finance overview

Banking & Finance news

Alpha Dhabi puts $2.51bn into ‘disruptive tech’

Alpha Dhabi Holding, the fourth most valuable listed company in Abu Dhabi, has made a AED9.2 billion ($2.51 billion) commitment to invest in UAE asset management company Chimera Capital and Chimera’s Alpha Wave Ventures II fund. The move is part of its strategy to target fast-growing technology companies. The total commitment comprises a capital contribution […]

BR Shetty NMC Healthcare

NMC scandal is watershed moment for UAE businesses

Revelations about the scale of hidden debts spark debate in the UAE about the need for more rigorous bank loan checks and company auditing The ongoing legal battles surrounding the NMC Healthcare, the largest private healthcare provider in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has been a big learning curve for how businesses manage their financial […]

Tie, Accessories, Accessory

Turkey’s planned inflation-linked bonds could sap deposits

Some banks are concerned that Turkey’s deposit base could decline as investors, eager to protect savings from price rises, snap up the government’s expected inflation-protected bond issuance, officials and bankers say. Given that inflation has soared to 70 percent, the bonds could pull considerable savings from lira and hard currency deposits and even sap the […]

AGBI

Saudi credit to SMEs up 11.5%, startup funding up 145%

Credit provided by Saudi financial institutions to small businesses rose by 11.5 percent last year, while funding raised by startups in the kingdom is up 145 percent this year, as the Riyadh government continues to encourage the development of the country’s local business community. Credit awarded to Saudi micro, small and medium-sized enterprises reached 203.25 […]

Mobile Phone, Cell Phone, Phone

Open all hours: inside the Gulf’s banking revolution

The UAE’s first open banking platform is helping fintech and banks bring personalised services to customers, and is accelerating the regional growth of this progressive sector The Gulf has the potential to leapfrog other regions of the world, including Europe, with its adoption of open banking as bricks and mortar branches “slowly disappear”, according to […]

Shelter, Countryside, Rural

Saudi extends deposit for Yemen and pays $2bn instalment

Saudi Arabia has extended a deposit it gave the central bank of Yemen’s internationally recognised government in 2018, and agreed to pay the final instalment of the $2 billion support package it promised. The Saudi finance ministry said the 2018 deposit would be extended to support Yemen’s currency and economic situation. The Yemeni central bank […]

Etisalat launched its e& identity in February

$4.4bn sounds a lot but e& has made the right call on Vodafone

Vodafone and e&, formerly known as Etisalat, will look to launch new products globally while working together to make greater efficiencies following the UAE telco’s deal to buy a $4.4 billion stake. Following the announcement that the UAE’s biggest telecoms operator has acquired a 9.8 percent stake in British mobile operator Vodafone Group, AGBI spoke […]

Person, Human, Hat

Mexico suspends duties on food staples to tackle inflation

Mexico will waive import duties for one year on a range of household staples, most of them foodstuffs, in a bid to curb inflation, the government said in its official gazette today. The products on the government list included corn oil, rice, tuna, pork, chicken, beef, onions, jalapeño peppers, beans, corn flour, wheat flour, eggs, […]

Optibus develop software to prepare transit systems for smart cities

Mobility tech firm Optibus valued at $1.3bn after raising $100m

US-Israeli mobility technology company Optibus has raised $100 million in a private funding round that values the company at $1.3 billion. The funding came from new and existing investors including Insight Partners, Bessemer Venture Partners, Verizon Ventures, Pitango First & Pitango Growth, Tencent, SOMV Momentum, and others, said Optibus, which has raised $260 million to […]

Cryptocurrencies have their ‘Lehman brothers moment’

Despite the crash of cryptocurrency stablecoin ecosystem, retail investors still see the contraction of currencies like Bitcoin as an opportunity As billions of dollars of value are wiped off cryptocurrency markets worldwide, retail investor strategies are diverging from those in the institutional space — the former senses cheap assets, while the latter worries of a […]

Strong oil prices lift Saudi Aramco profits by 82%

State-owned oil producer Saudi Aramco yesterday reported an almost 82 percent rise in first-quarter net profit, broadly in line with analyst forecasts, helped by strong oil prices. Aramco, which is at par with Apple Inc as the world’s most valuable company, reported a net income of $39.5 billion for the quarter to March 31 from […]

First dirham-denominated bond listed on Nasdaq Dubai

The UAE’s first dirham-denominated treasury bond was listed on Nasdaq Dubai yesterday. Mohamed Hadi Al Hussaini, minister of state for financial affairs, today rang Nasdaq Dubai’s market-opening bell to celebrate the listing and circulation of AED1.5 billion as the first Dirham-denominated treasury bonds issued by the UAE Federal Government acting through the Ministry of Finance. […]

Business partnerships between India and the UAE are strengthened by the new deal

New deal gives India and UAE plenty to smile about

As the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between India and the United Arab Emirates comes into force, AGBI looks at a highly lucrative co-regional relationship Of the many alliances that have sprouted out of the Middle East, the one between India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) stands out – seemingly weathering all global political and […]

Emirates aims to start repaying Dubai $4.1bn in Covid aid

Dubai’s Emirates hopes that it will soon start paying back the 15 billion dirhams ($4.1 billion) in state assistance it receive from the government during the pandemic, its chairman said on Monday. The Dubai government injected billions of dollars into its flagship airline via equity injections over the course of the pandemic that had at […]

Amr Nosseir used to be managing director, chairman and head of Middle East Business Development at CVC Capital Partners

CD&R hires Amr Nosseir, CVC’s top Mideast dealmaker

Private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) has hired CVC Capital Partners’ top dealmaker for the Middle East as it seeks to bolster its presence and expand relationships with investors in the region. CD&R said yesterday it had appointed Amr Nosseir as senior advisor to the firm. Nosseir previously served as managing director, chairman […]

Khaldoon Khalifa al-Mubarak, Mubadala CEO

Mubadala posts record $33bn income in 2021

Abu Dhabi state investor Mubadala posted a record income of 122 billion dirhams ($33 billion) in 2021, citing strong investment returns, the monetisation of some assets and new partnerships. “2021 was Mubadala’s strongest financial year in its 20-year history,” Group CEO Khaldoon Khalifa al-Mubarak said in a statement. The 2021 result for so-called total comprehensive […]

Japan’s Nikkei hits two-month low after Wall Street slides

Japan’s Nikkei fell to its lowest in almost two months today as technology heavyweights tracked a sharp decline on Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei share average fell 1.77 percent to 25,748.72, the lowest since March 15. The broader Topix fell 1.19 percent to 1,829.18. “It was hard to bet on Japanese stocks after the Nasdaq’s […]