Cornerstone, the cloud-based provider of international payment, currency risk management and electronic account services to SMEs, has opened an office in Dubai
Author Archives: Staff Writer
Al Salam Bank-Bahrain
Bahrain’s Al Salam Bank eyes growth as talks start to acquire Ithmaar assets
Al Salam Bank-Bahrain chairman confirms discussions with Ithmaar Holding for potential acquisition of assets
Dar Al Arkan
Saudi developer teams up with Missoni for luxury $217m Dubai tower
Urban Oasis project will feature the Arab world’s first bespoke Missoni-inspired living spaces
diriyah gate
Green light for Saudi giga project progress after ring road completion
Diriyah Gate Development Authority announces ‘significant milestone’ which paves way for all future work on project
air travel
UAE named most powerful passport as world reopens after Covid shock
Arton Capital’s latest Passport Index reveals 14.8% rise in the World Openness Score at the start of Q4 since the beginning of the year
Mental health
Why I’m giving my staff the day off on World Mental Health Day
Louise Jacobson stresses the importance of addressing mental health in the workplace and why it has been a priority in her PR business since 2019
Abu Dhabi International Airport
Wizz Air Abu Dhabi plans to ramp up operations as restrictions ease
Airline says it will commence seven new routes in the coming weeks bringing its third aircraft to full capacity
Boris Johnson
UK starts talks on GCC trade deal in post-Brexit move
Announcement comes as British trade with the GCC was worth about $61bn in 2019
DAFZA
Dubai’s DAFZA sees H1 trade growth of 34% despite Covid disruptions
Trade in the free zone totals AED77bn in the first half of 2021, with a trade surplus of AED6.2bn
DP World
Work starts on $800m project to overhaul key Saudi port
Saudi Ports Authority and DP World Jeddah start construction on the expansion and modernisation of the South Container Terminal at Jeddah Islamic Port
Acciona
Spanish developer wins $1bn sewage treatment plant deals in Saudi Arabia
Acciona, along with local partners, will build, own and operate three treatment plants in Gulf kingdom
Dubai apartment prices
Most villa prices surge by over 20% as Dubai’s real estate market rallies
ValuStrat says Dubai’s apartment submarket also continued to improve in September but at a much slower pace
Abu dhabi tourism
World famous Ibiza beach club set to open in Abu Dhabi
Developer Miral announces that the club will be coming to Hilton Abu Dhabi Yas Island later this year
Abu Dhabi International Airport
Revealed: How confident are UAE air passengers following Covid shock?
Passenger Confidence Tracker 2021 shows UAE travellers are among the world’s most confident despite impact of pandemic
digital transformation
How big data, analytics will transform Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island
Developer Miral announces the launch of its Noor Initiative to drive forward the digital transformation of tourism destination
English Premier League
Saudi wealth fund completes deal for Newcastle United FC
The head of the Public Investment Fund, Yasir Al Rumayyan, will become a non-executive chairman of the Premier League club
Du
Dubai telecoms giant EITC names new chairman
Malek Sultan Al Malek is elected to lead Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company which operates in the UAE under the Du brand
Insurance solutions
Saudi Arabia approves new parcel insurance to boost e-commerce sector
Saudi Central Bank says insurance product will be offered in kingdom to cover the risk of transporting parcels in the event of loss or damage
business funding
Saudi food-tech start-up Siwar closes $7.5m Series A funding round
Funding round led by Seera Group, the largest travel and tourism company in the MENA region
clean energy
UAE says to invest $163bn in clean, renewable energy by 2050
Investment is part of the UAE’s efforts to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, says Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
beauty business
Dubai’s Mikyajy launches GCC’s first fully halal-certified cosmetics line
Coronavirus has increased consumer-demand for sustainable and ‘mask-proof’ makeup, company CEO said
Dubai Financial Market
Shareholders call for dismissal of board of Dubai’s Union Properties
Dubai developer confirms that proposal will be on agenda at annual assembly meeting on October 26
General Authority for Statistics
Why Saudi Arabia’s unemployment rate is set to fall further from 10-year low
Analysts say decrease in jobless figure reflects the broader recovery seen in the Saudi economy which is set to continue into 2022
Al Mal Capital REIT
GCC REITs under pressure amid real estate market volatility
With constant fluctuations in the region’s real estate market, adopting international standards to GCC REITs may not be the best approach, according to Tariq Qaqish, CEO of Salt Fund Placement
beIN Media Group
Saudi Arabia close to lifting Beln ban, easing possible takeover of Newcastle United
BeIn holds the rights to broadcast some of the world’s biggest sporting events, including the UEFA Champions League soccer tournament, across the Middle East and North Africa
Asset Management
Bahrain’s Investcorp deepens industrial reach in US
Investcorp acquired 89 industrial properties spanning 2.2 million square feet worth $380m in the US
Alex Malouf
Actions, not words: When will we realise gender diversity is good for business?
For all of the talk about gender equality, we’re doing a woeful job of empowering women in the workforce, writes Alex Malouf
digital payments
India’s Paytm in talks with ADIA, BlackRock for IPO stakes
State-backed wealth investors Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Singapore’s GIC Pte are among those weighing bidding to participate in the IPO
private equity
Saudi wealth fund hires Hage as global private equity head
It named Turqi Alnowaiser and Yazeed Alhumied as deputy governors and hired former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. banker Eyas AlDossari as head of investment advisory within the MENA Investments Division
economic outlook
Over half of MENA investors confident in markets in second half of year
Fifty-six percent said they were optimistic about market conditions in the second half of 2021, with the majority citing sustainable economic development and Covid-19 recovery as reasons for being bullish
bond issuance
UAE’s Ministry of Finance set to issue dollar-dominated multi-tranche bond offering
Subscription of the sovereign bonds expected to witness high demand from global and regional investors
currency market
Indian rupee predicted to fall to 76 against dollar on rising dollar index, crude prices
The weakening trend of rupee is expected to lead to a surge in non-resident Indian (NRI) remittances to the South Asian country, as expats can earn more bucks for each dollar remitted
DIFC
DIFC Employment Law’s new amendments explained
Changes serve to clarify ambiguities regarding the existing law and will increase the financial centre’s attractiveness
Blockchain
GITEX 2021: Bloqwork gears up for Future Blockchain Summit
Bloqwork has announced its participation in the upcoming Future Blockchain Summit, which will take place as part of GITEX 2021
CLOUDSUITES
GITEX 2021: Infor to demo industry-specific cloud innovations
Infor will demonstrate its ability to help organisations in manufacturing, healthcare, and automotive to digitally transform
automation
GITEX 2021: Barracuda underscores commitment to the Middle East
Barracuda Networks RVP Sales for META & CEE Toni El Inati discusses the company’s participation in the upcoming GITEX Technology Week
Avaya
GITEX 2021: Avaya to enable ‘Experiences that Matter’ with composable solutions
Avaya’s presence at GITEX to feature a global ecosystem of Avaya experts, partners, customers and “Experience Builders”
GITEX
GITEX 2021: Aruba to help Middle East enterprises harness the power of the ‘Intelligent Edge’
Aruba to demonstrate how organisations in the Middle East can leverage Aruba ESP (Edge Services Platform) at GITEX
ATTIVO NETWORKS
GITEX 2021: Attivo Networks to spotlight the importance of credential protection
Ray Kafity, Vice President – Middle East Turkey and Africa (META) at Attivo Networks, discussed the crucial role that IDR solutions play in the hybrid era
Blockchain
GITEX 2021: TDeFi to host ‘Blockchain Business Hackathon’
Geared towards showcasing exceptional decentralised products, TDeFi is bringing the high-performance world of the blockchain to its Bizthon at the Future Blockchain Summit 2021
cloud security
GITEX 2021: Fortinet to demo security innovations aimed at future-proofing digital transformation
Fortinet has announced its participation at the upcoming GITEX Technology Week, where it will showcase the Fortinet Security Fabric
CHECK POINT
GITEX 2021: Check Point promises a serious fight against the ‘ransomware pandemic’
Country Manager Ram Narayanan reveals his company’s plans for the GITEX Technology Week and explains why it is important for their business
Artificial intelligence
GITEX 2021: Software AG to showcase its ‘Connected Enterprise’ experiences
Exhibit includes a multi-sensory ‘360-degree Immersive Video Experience’ and Smart Bike demo that demonstrate a fully connected future
data centre
GITEX 2021: Eaton to launch VCOM, its Data Centre Infrastructure Management software
The central theme of the power giant’s participation is ‘transform your power network by optimising the data and the electrical domains’
data protection
GITEX 2021: British data security company Galaxkey to showcase its solutions
The company’s comprehensive platform provides a unique combination of ‘security – simple usage – economic pricing’
Artificial intelligence
GITEX 2021: SambaNova Systems is bringing its AI-related products to the region
The company will feature Dataflow-as-a-Service offering, which will advance AI and Machine Learning adoption in the Middle East
Cybersecurity
GITEX 2021: Spire Solutions to focus on securing digital assets in MEA
Spire has been the Official Distribution Partner of GISEC (also organized by DWTC) since its inception and this is its first time at GITEX
District 2020
District 2020: How the future of Expo 2020 will drive Dubai’s innovative ecosystem
District 2020, the future vision of Expo, will help drive Dubai’s innovative ecosystem and facilitate multi-stakeholder co-creation shares Tala Al Ansari, director and head – innovation ecosystem & Scale2Dubai, Expo 2020 Dubai
apps
Top backer of Dubai app Fetchr warns start-up faces liquidation
Courier app Fetchr was valued at almost $300m in a 2017 fundraising round
Coronavirus Pandemic
Remote working is here to stay after Covid crisis, say UAE employees
New research suggests 82% of UAE respondents are intending to spend at least one day a week working from home in the future following global Covid crisis
DP World
Dubai free zone JAFZA sees 40% growth during first half of 2021
Jebel Ali Free Zone accounts for nearly 24% of total foreign investment in Dubai
Arkan Building Materials Co
Merger completed to create the UAE’s largest steel and building materials firm
Arkan Building Materials Company confirms the legal completion of its merger with Emirates Steel Industries
Emirates Airline
How Gulf airlines are leading aviation’s fightback after coronavirus
Etihad Airways, Jazeera Airways and Qatar Airways will join Emirates in implementing the IATA Travel Pass in a phased rollout
coronavirus UAE
‘We overcame Covid-19’, says Abu Dhabi Crown Prince
Things in the Emirates are slowly returning to normal after one of the world’s strictest lockdowns was introduced early in the pandemic to stem the virus’s spread