Mohammed tops Gulf Power league

Ruler of Dubai and prime minister of the UAE Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has been ranked the most influential businessman in the Gulf today by The Times newspaper.

Sheikh Mohammed tops the GulfPower25, published following a week of Gulf-based business coverage by the newspaper which relocated its business desk to the region for its Times Gulf Business Forum.

The league table lists the most rich, powerful, influential and entrepreneurial business leaders in the Gulf region, covering the six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The Times cited Sheikh Mohammed’s vision for reform as “fuelling the frenetic development of the city and spurring the transformation of the Gulf”.

“Sheikh Mohammed heads our list because he is powerful, influential and rich. However, it is his role as the catalyst for change in the region that sets him apart” it added.

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia ranked second in the list. “King Abdullah is, no doubt, the most powerful man in the Middle East, but he is still to put his country’s wealth and human capital to work” The Times said.

UAE president and ruler of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan ranked third, followed by Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thaniis, chairman and chief executive of the Qatar Investment Authority, in fourth place. Saudi Arabia's Prince Alwaleed bin Talal al-Saud came in fifth.

The full list can be viewed on The Times’ website, where it will be updated to take account of readers’ comments. “The personalities, and their rankings, will change in the light of convincing contributions” the newspaper said.

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