Emirates NBD launches digital bank for entrepreneurs and SMEs

E20. is geared specifically towards entrepreneurs and SMEs

Video: UAE sending first astronaut to space today

Hazza Al Mansoori is set to go to the ISS

Abu Dhabi appoints new tourism chief

Abu Dhabi sells $10bn of bonds in first international offering in two years

The emirate is taking advantage of investor demand for high-quality debt

Sheikh Mohammed issues new law on joint ownership of real estate in Dubai

Violators of the new law are subject to financial penalties up to Dhs1m

Saudi to waive expat fees for industrial companies

Since January 2018, businesses have been required to pay fees for foreign workers they employ

Video: Largest ground-mounted private solar plant in UAE opened by Nestlé in Dubai

New plant at Nestlé Middle East’s Al Maha factory contains about 28,000 solar panels – enough to take about 1,500 cars off roads

Revealed: Top 10 banks in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia’s biggest listed banks ranked by total asset size

Emaar opens first cafe in Dubai Mall

The Dubai developer’s new Emaar Cafe will also boast a variety of smart services beyond food and beverage offerings

UAE sets 50% clean energy target by 2050

Climate and Environment Minister announces at UN in New York that the UAE plans 50 per cent of its energy to come from renewable sources by 2050

Abu Dhabi to sell dollar bonds amid demand for high quality debt

The emirate plans to sell benchmark-sized dollar-denominated bonds in three maturities

Dubai one of world’s top 10 financial centres – new report

Global Financial Centres Index ranks Dubai as the world’s eighth most-important financial centre – its highest ranking ever

Overseas voting for UAE elections begins

Polls have opened overseas for Federal National Council elections

Revealed: Top 10 nations for remittances from the UAE

Remittances from the UAE surpassed Dhs80bn ($21.78bn) in the first half of 2019

Dubai’s Meraas, Brookfield create Dhs5bn retail joint venture

The joint venture will own and operate the portfolio of Meraas retail assets, including The Beach, City Walk and La Mer

Dubai airport briefly halts flights on suspected drone activity

At least two Emirates flights were diverted to nearby airports

Women account for 60% of Dubai social media business licences – new data

UAE nationals constitute about 72 per cent of social media business licences issued since 2017

Revealed: Top 10 banks in the UAE

The UAE’s biggest listed banks ranked by total asset size

UK issues UAE travel advisory

The Foreign Office has issued an advisory reminding UK citizens products which contain CBD are illegal in the UAE

Dubai’s Emirates postpones premium economy launch due to 777x delay

Emirates is the launch customer for the plane, with 150 orders

Dubai’s Emirates offers facial recognition ID checks on US-bound flights

The airline has become the first non-US airline to receive approval for biometric boarding from US Customs Border Protection

New project featuring a church, mosque and synagogue to be built in Abu Dhabi

Called the Abrahamic Family House, the project will be located on Saadiyat Island

UAE’s Commercial Bank plans to cut up to 18% of its workforce

Between 80 to 100 people are expected to accept the offer via a voluntary redundancy programme

Pictures: Saudi Arabia reveals scale of damage from oil attacks

The kingdom has vowed a swift restoration of output at Khurais and Abqaiq after the attack disabled 5 per cent of global supply

Saudi Aramco adds Barclays, BNP, Deutsche, UBS as bookrunners for IPO

Aramco aims to stick to its schedule for planned analyst presentations and hasn’t told banks of any plans to delay the IPO

The appetite for wind energy in the GCC

A number of wind energy projects have recently come on-line or are in development in the region

Strong growth for women-led startups in the GCC

More female founders are starting their businesses in the GCC and the Middle East. But work remains to close the gender gap.

GCC healthcare market to be worth $70bn by 2020

UAE healthcare: How clinics can survive the crowded market

A partnership model can help clinics achieve profits via economies of scale and cost-sharing

Lebanon needs to implement reforms needed for Saudi aid to exit debt trap

Without outside assistance, Lebanon, which has a debt-GDP ratio of more than 150 per cent, may struggle to avoid a default

‘All-out war’ if US or Saudis strike Iran – foreign minister Zarif

Javad Zarif stressed that Iran wasn’t involved in the weekend attacks in Saudi Arabia

RTA Tamkeen programme

UAE leads GCC in social progress – report

The UAE once again tops the GCC in the 2019 Social Progress Index