Dubai UAE

Dubai issues 55,194 new business licences during the first 10 months of 2021

The figure marks a 69 per cent increase over the same period in 2020 when 32,626 licenses were issued

Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, UAE MOCCAE, Eugene Willemsen, and Aamer Sheikh

PepsiCo launches MENA edition of Greenhouse Accelerator programme

It has partnered with the UAE’s Ministry of Climate Change and Environment for the initiative

fintech

VentureSouq launches MENA region’s first fintech fund

The $50m fund will invest in early-stage fintech and SaaS companies across the Middle East, Africa and Pakistan

Saudi stock exchange seeks to raise as much as $1bn in IPO

The exchange is selling a 30 per cent stake, or 36 million shares

Emirati employee

Emirati members of Dubai SME to get up to seven-year exemption on licence fee

The fee exemption applies to registered Emirati members who have not completed the five-year period

Here’s how the future of payments looks like in the Middle East

As the MENA market matures, several nations are shifting towards more sophisticated and customised payment options says Ozgur Ozvardar, vice president and general manager, Verifone Middle East and North Africa

EFG Hermes Holding concludes acquisition of aiBANK

Via the transaction, the firm is marking an entry into the Egyptian commercial banking sector

Up to 66% of Indian expats plan to increase their investments in the UAE – HSBC

Property is seen as the most important investment class for Indians in the UAE

EFG Hermes Holding reports 26% increase in net profit for first nine months of 2021

The group’s revenues also increased 8 per cent for the first nine months of the year

Dubai Financial Market

Dubai’s DFM announces programme to encourage listings from private businesses

The programme encompasses incentives including financial and post-listing support

Emirates Islamic lists another $500m sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai

The latest listing brings the bank’s current sukuk value on the exchange to $1bn

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank appoints DIB banker as group CEO

Nasser Abdulla Al Awadhi previously served as the group chief of consumer banking at Dubai Islamic Bank

DubaiDubai Future District Fund

New Dhs1bn fund to support tech startups in Dubai

Sharif El-Badawi has been appointed as CEO of the Dubai Future District Fund

Dubai tech firm StarLink unveils listing plan

StarLink provides cybersecurity and cloud services across the Middle East, Africa and Turkey

Dubai’s utility asks banks to pitch for multi-billion dollar IPO

DEWA reported net income of $1.3bn for 2019

SEC rejects Bitcoin ETF, showing it still opposes spot listing

October’s launch of two Bitcoin futures ETFs marked a major milestone for the industry

UAE’s Century Financial to launch new funds, AI trading platform and property crowdfunding site

The investment firm is diversifying its business with plans to also launch in Saudi soon, says Ali AbdulKareem Ali, senior executive director at Century Financial

Dubai road-toll operator Salik to seek about $1bn in IPO

Plans unveiled to list Salik road toll system on Dubai Financial Market

There are currently eight Salik toll gates in the city, with three million vehicles registered in the system

Everyone has the right to invest in financial markets

The online trading revolution has long started in other parts of the world

Singapore’s The Social Loan Company secures investment from Abu Dhabi’s ARI Holding

The new capital will be used to fuel the growth of its digital lending operations, deepen its AI and predictive analytics capabilities and grow its global talent pool

ClearTax expands its operations into the Middle East, raises $75m

The tax and compliance technology solution provider is looking to enter the UAE by mid-2022 with e-invoicing and VAT offerings within the country

Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, Bahrain Bourse sign strategic partnership agreement

The two entities will introduce products and services including exchange-traded funds, smart order routing and cross-border direct trading

Saudi economy grows at fastest rate in nearly a decade

Gross domestic product expanded by 6.8 per cent compared to the same quarter of 2020

UAE’s Mashreq posts 24.7% dip in net profit for first nine months of 2021

The bank’s operating profit for nine months of the year rose by 14.3 per cent to Dhs2.4bn

Abu-Dhabi

Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange proposes SPAC regulatory framework

The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and Abu Dhabi’s Department of Economic Development have submitted a proposal to the Securities and Commodities Authority

Shailesh Dash

Charting the growth of SPACs

Are special purpose acquisitions companies becoming a serious alternate funding avenue for private companies?

Dubai Financial Market appoints new CEO

Hamed Ahmed Ali was previously appointed as deputy CEO and chief markets officer in July 2020

Visa Dubai

Visa opens its new flagship regional headquarters in Dubai

Spanning 100,000 sq ft, the new HQ will serve almost 90 countries across the Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa region

Investcorp

Bahrain’s Investcorp builds EUR1bn European real estate portfolio

It recently acquired ten UK industrial assets for a combined purchase price of GBP56.7m

Saudi stock exchange set for December trading debut, CEO says

The offering could value the bourse at between $3bn and $4bn