Analysis Startup exits escalate in UAE The UAE is seeing an increase in startup exits this year, as the market matures while bigger players look to acquisitions to scale up their operations. The UAE Venture Investment Report, by research firm Magnitt, states that there were 10 startup exits in the Emirates in the first half of 2022, just one less than […] August 19, 2022
Banking & Finance Egypt’s central bank governor resigns a year early Egypt’s central bank governor Tarek Amer has submitted his resignation, the office of President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi said on Wednesday, just over a year before the completion of Amer’s final term. There was no announcement of a replacement for Amer, who has been appointed as a presidential adviser. The central bank governor is one of […] August 18, 2022
Banking & Finance HSBC appoints new head of Middle East global banking HSBC has appointed Julian Wentzel as head of global banking for its Middle East, North Africa and Turkey (MENAT) business, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters on Wednesday. Wentzel will be based in Dubai and a search is ongoing to find a successor for his previous role as head of global banking for […] August 18, 2022
Banking & Finance Brazil’s Burger King owner opposes Mubadala takeover bid The owner of Burger King Brazil, Zamp SA, said on Wednesday its board of directors opposes Abu Dhabi state investor Mubadala Capital LLC’s takeover bid for the firm, voicing its objection weeks before shareholders decide on the deal. Zamp, previously known as BK Brasil Operacao e Assessoria a Restaurantes SA, is the master franchisee of […] August 18, 2022
Dubai bank metaverse Banking & Finance Dubai bank enters metaverse to support $4bn tech push Emirates NBD, Dubai’s biggest bank, today announced its first play in the metaverse as part of the emirate’s ambition to become one of the world’s top 10 virtual economies. Its global accelerator programme, in partnership with the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) Fintech Hive and powered by Microsoft, is for metaverse startups and aims to […] August 17, 2022
Banking & Finance New Zealand central bank does not expect recession Reserve Bank of New Zealand Governor Adrian Orr said on Wednesday that while growth would slow he did not expect a recession, adding that the central bank believed it was on top of inflation, which has hit three-decade highs. “Through our projection period ahead, while we do not forecast a recession … we do forecast […] August 17, 2022
Banking & Finance Saudi invests $7bn in US giants from Microsoft to Starbucks Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund continued its massive investment in US equities in the second quarter of 2022 despite global recession fears. At a time when the kingdom’s income from oil almost doubled, it snapped up $7.6 billion of stocks in technology, e-commerce, retail and finance companies – from Microsoft and Amazon to Costco, Starbucks […] August 16, 2022
Analysis Banking & Finance How Oman has moved from protests to surplus in a year Last June Oman was facing protests over job layoffs and poor economic conditions as the sultanate suffered from the double shock of the coronavirus pandemic and a slump in oil prices. Just 14 months later Fitch Ratings has upgraded Oman’s long-term foreign-currency issuer default rating to ‘BB’ from ‘BB-‘, with a stable outlook. Fitch said […] August 16, 2022
Banking & Finance Egypt’s Central Bank says foreign treasury bills exodus continues A foreign exodus from Egyptian treasury bills continued into May, Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) data showed on Monday, after the Ukraine crisis and concerns about US interest rate hikes prompted foreign investors to cash out their holdings. T-bills held by foreign customers dropped in the month by 30 billion Egyptian pounds, at the time […] August 16, 2022
Exclusive Digital payments giant hopes for boost from UAE-Africa trade talks Dubai-based digital payments giant Network International is hopeful that “more doors will open” for it across Africa as the UAE starts free trade deal talks on the continent. The Middle East and Africa-focused company, which generated nearly 30 percent of its revenues from Africa last year with key markets including Kenya, Egypt and South Africa, […] August 15, 2022
Banking & Finance Saudi Arabia plans to renew $3bn deposit to Pakistan Saudi Arabia is planning to renew its $3 billion (656 billion Pakistani rupee) deposit with the State Bank of Pakistan, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The kingdom also plans to provide $100 million a month for 10 months in petroleum products that will be granted as additional support, the news agency reported, expecting the […] August 15, 2022
Egypt’s foreign currency gap narrows to $400m in July Egypt’s foreign currency gap narrowed to $400 million last month from $3.9 billion in February, deputy governor of the Central Bank of Egypt Gamal Negm said on Saturday. Egypt has seen billions of dollars leave its markets since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February as investors have fled emerging markets for safer havens. But […] August 14, 2022
Analysis Banking & Finance BlackRock may spur wealthy to make crypto leap Institutional investors and high net worth individuals have traditionally shunned cryptocurrencies as volatile and untrustworthy. The ongoing turbulence in the market, with the value of bitcoin dropping by nearly half so far this year, has not helped sentiment but there are signs this is changing. BlackRock, which has $8.49 trillion of assets under management, yesterday […] August 12, 2022
Turkish locals’ forex and gold holdings rise $3.77bn Turkish locals’ forex and gold holdings rose $3.77 billion when adjusted for the parity effect to stand at $216.86 billion by August 5, data showed on Thursday, as corporates bought hard currencies. Turkish local corporates bought $4.27 billion last week, when adjusted for the parity effect, central bank data showed. Individuals sold $498 million in […] August 12, 2022
Banking & Finance Saudi Arabia’s Maaden’s Q2 profit triples to $1.1bn Saudi Arabian Mining Co. (Maaden) reported Q2 2022 net profit more than tripled to SAR 4.03 billion ($1.07 billion) from SAR 1.10 billion in the year-earlier period on higher sales prices and increased production. Sales revenue stood at SAR 11.87 billion in Q2 2022 compared to SAR 6.10 billion in the prior period, the mining […] August 12, 2022
Analysis Banking & Finance Traditional UAE banks must snap up neobanks to survive The UAE’s growing army of digital-only banks could soon be snapped up by traditional banks as digitisation continues apace, experts have told AGBI. A global survey published on Tuesday by UK-based comparison platform, Finder, said 19 percent of adults in the UAE have a neobank account, up from 17 percent last year – and that […] August 11, 2022
Banking & Finance Kuwait central bank raises discount rate by 25 bps The Central Bank of Kuwait raised its discount rate by 25 basis points to 2.75 percent effective from Thursday, it said in a statement on Wednesday. The decision was in response to inflationary pressures, bank Governor Basel Al-Haroon said in the statement. The bank had also increased the rate by 25 bps on July 27, […] August 11, 2022
Banking & Finance Saudi Arabia invests $1.3bn in four Egyptian firms The Saudi Egyptian Investment Co (SEIC), owned by Saudi Arabia’s state-owned Public Investment Fund (PIF), has bought minority stakes in four Egyptian companies for $1.3 billion, Egypt’s planning ministry said on Wednesday. The companies are Abu Qir Fertizilers and Chemical Industries, Misr Fertilizers Production Company , Alexandria Container and Cargo Handling, and payments firm E-Finance […] August 11, 2022
Abu Dhabi’s IHC eyes more takeovers in India and Turkey Abu Dhabi conglomerate International Holding Co (IHC) expects to increase its takeover activity, including in India and Turkey, as global market turbulence has created “a buyers’ market,” its chief executive told Reuters on Wednesday. IHC, the most valuable company on the Abu Dhabi bourse with a market capitalisation of around $167 billion, is aiming for […] August 11, 2022
Banking & Finance UAE lifts prison term for American convicted of money laundering A United Arab Emirates court has lifted a prison sentence but upheld a conviction on money laundering charges for US citizen and civil rights attorney Asim Ghafoor, who was detained while transiting through Dubai last month, the Judicial Department and a lawyer for Ghafoor said on Wednesday. The court ordered Ghafoor to pay AED 5 […] August 11, 2022
Banking & Finance Reforms draw North American investors to the Gulf North America-based entities were the most active investors in Middle East and North Africa merger and acquisition (M&A) deals in the first half of 2022. Attracted by ongoing economic reforms in the region, US and Canadian firms took part in 30 percent of inbound M&A activity, with a particular focus on technology-related investments. The latest […] August 10, 2022
Analysis Banking & Finance SoftBank slump not a ‘total disaster’ for Gulf wealth funds The $23.1 billion quarterly loss announced by Japan’s SoftBank Vision Fund this week may not represent a “total disaster” for its Gulf investors, according to US-based experts. Announced during President Donald Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia in 2017, the Vision Fund is heavily backed by GCC sovereign wealth funds (SWFs). Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund […] August 10, 2022
