ADS Securities (ADSS), a private Abu Dhabi-based financial services firm, plans annual revenue growth of 15-20 per cent in 2018, as it expands its services through automation and other technologies, its chief executive said.
"We are trying to maintain 15-20 per cent net revenue growth because we want to reinvest [the surplus] in new technologies and people," Philippe Ghanem, who is also vice-chairman of parent ADSS Group, told The National in an interview.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and other data-driven technology “is like a huge wave coming over our industry and it has allowed a company like us to grow”, he added.
Greater interconnection between countries, and the software for machines to talk to each other faster than ever before, “has helped us understand what the market wants and build the right tools to enhance trading, allowing ADS to boost its revenues,” Mr Ghanem added.
ADSS provides foreign exchange, online trading, investment, wealth and asset management services for institutional, private and retail clients across the Middle East, Asia and Europe. Clients are serviced from ADSS’s offices in Abu Dhabi, London, Singapore and Hong Kong.
The company, which trades as much as $19 billion per day, according to Mr Ghanem, plans to expand its brokerage services across a range of areas from commodities to cryptocurrencies, and new technologies are a key enabler of this. Later this year, ADSS will launch a trading app called Orex aimed at millennials, which represent a growing portion of the company’s investor base.
The mobile app will provide a cheaper, simpler and more accessible user experience than ADSS’ other trading platforms, and is part of the company’s drive to remain relevant as technology casts the role of intermediary parties, such as brokers, in doubt. Mr Ghanem declined to reveal the level of fees for the new app as they are still being finalised.
Financial services, and other industries, are being disrupted by the development of advanced technologies including automation, which is expected to displace 32 per cent of jobs globally by 2030, according to a report by consultancy McKinsey & Company in March. In the Middle East, 45 per cent of existing jobs could be automated today, affecting more than 20 million full-time employees and $366.6 billion of wage income, the report said.
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Read more:
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Regional financial institutions have started preparing for change, with Dubai's Mashreq Bank telling The National last September the lender planned to shed 10 per cent of its 4,000-strong workforce in the ensuing 12 months as investments in AI and other technologies reduce its dependence on human resources.
Mr Ghanem said ADSS had more than 300 employees two years ago and that number has reduced since then because of technology. “It’s taking over – where you once had 20-30 people for one platform, you now have just 10 people,” he said. The number has not depleted solely because of redundancies, he added.
“We have given many people the opportunity to re-train in a new area of specialism because the field they were in is no longer the field of the future.” At the same time, ADSS is investing in different types of skills and people, for example data miners, for which there is high demand.
Cryptocurrencies, which have been criticised by some analysts because of extreme market volatility, are an exciting opportunity for ADSS and it has already begun trading in this area. “The currencies themselves are not what’s important, but the underlying technology, blockchain, will be a success,” Mr Ghanem said.
In terms of markets, Saudi Arabia is another growth opportunity because of its size and the extensive reforms its capital markets are undergoing, he added. ADSS launched a Saudi exchange-traded fund (ETF) in May through its ADS Investments Solutions unit, which is to be listed on the Abu Dhabi stock exchange. It followed the FTSE Russell Saudi Arabia index that ADSS developed the previous year, designed to minimise the volatility of the FTSE Saudi Arabia All Cap Index.
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Company profile
Name: Dukkantek
Started: January 2021
Founders: Sanad Yaghi, Ali Al Sayegh and Shadi Joulani
Based: UAE
Number of employees: 140
Sector: B2B Vertical SaaS(software as a service)
Investment: $5.2 million
Funding stage: Seed round
Investors: Global Founders Capital, Colle Capital Partners, Wamda Capital, Plug and Play, Comma Capital, Nowais Capital, Annex Investments and AMK Investment Office
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20M3%20MACBOOK%20AIR%20(13%22)
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MATCH INFO
Barcelona 4 (Messi 23' pen, 45 1', 48', Busquets 85')
Celta Vigo 1 (Olaza 42')
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
Ten10 Cricket League
Venue and schedule Sharjah Cricket Stadium, December 14 to 17
Teams
Maratha Arabians Leading player: Virender Sehwag; Top picks: Mohammed Amir, Imad Wasim; UAE players: Shaiman Anwar, Zahoor Khan
Bengal Lions Leading player: Sarfraz Ahmed; Top picks: Sunil Narine, Mustafizur Rahman; UAE players: Mohammed Naveed, Rameez Shahzad
Kerala Kings Leading player: Eoin Morgan; Top picks: Kieron Pollard, Sohail Tanvir; UAE players: Rohan Mustafa, Imran Haider
Pakhtoons Leading player: Shahid Afridi; Top picks: Fakhar Zaman, Tamim Iqbal; UAE players: Amjad Javed, Saqlain Haider
Punjabi Legends Leading player: Shoaib Malik; Top picks: Hasan Ali, Chris Jordan; UAE players: Ghulam Shabber, Shareef Asadullah
Team Sri Lanka Cricket Will be made up of Colombo players who won island’s domestic limited-overs competition
Suggested picnic spots
Abu Dhabi
Umm Al Emarat Park
Yas Gateway Park
Delma Park
Al Bateen beach
Saadiyaat beach
The Corniche
Zayed Sports City
Dubai
Kite Beach
Zabeel Park
Al Nahda Pond Park
Mushrif Park
Safa Park
Al Mamzar Beach Park
Al Qudrah Lakes
Padmaavat
Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Starring: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor, Jim Sarbh
3.5/5
Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
Company%20Profile
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A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
