General Atlantic is opening a new office in Abu Dhabi, the second outpost for the US-based private equity company in the Middle East in less than two months as it aims to build on its $1 billion of investments in the region.
The new base of operations at Abu Dhabi Global Market comes after the company’s announcement at the end of October to establish its presence in the Saudi capital Riyadh.
The latest move of the company with about $100 billion in assets under management “reflects its commitment to partnering with investors and entrepreneurs” in the Arab world’s second-largest economy, the company said.
The expansion of the footprint in the broader Middle East North Africa and Turkey region also underpins its “conviction in attractive opportunities” that are available in fast-growing regional economies, it said.
General Atlantic is the latest among global financial institutions, asset managers, family offices as well as international funds and investors to set up a base in ADGM, one of the fastest-growing onshore financial hubs in the region.
Chicago-based Nuveen, which oversees about $1.2 trillion of AUMs, completed its registration with ADGM in September this year to capitalise on a rising affluent investor base in the UAE.
The 125-year-old company was the second asset manager with a 13-figure AUM to call Abu Dhabi home after PGIM, the global asset management business of Prudential Financial with $1.33 trillion in assets, opened its office earlier that month.
Last month, BlackRock, the world's biggest asset manager, also received a commercial licence to operate in Abu Dhabi.
The number of asset and fund managers operating within the jurisdiction reached 128 by the end of the third quarter, managing 156 funds. The AUMs of companies operating in the financial hub have tripled, with a 215 per cent annual increase in the three months, according to the latest ADGM data.
The New York-based General Atlantic, which invests in growth companies, said its Abu Dhabi office will play a vital role in accelerating its growth in the region and will allow partnerships and engagements with companies in the firm’s core investment strategies – technology, consumer, financial services, health care, and climate.
The company has been actively investing in the Middle East and North African region since 2012 and has so far invested over $1 billion in companies including eyewa, a regional eyewear retailer; Insider, an AI platform; Property Finder, an online real estate platform; and Trendyol, a regional e-commerce marketplace.
The company’s past investments include Yemeksepeti, an online food ordering marketplace, which was sold to Delivery Hero and Network International, a UAE-based payments solution provider.
The Menat remains a crucial plank of the company's global growth plans as economies in the Middle East alone are expected to grow by about 4 per cent in 2025 and 2026 and have the “potential to unlock around $1 trillion in additional GDP through greater economic diversification", the company said.
The region’s digital economy is also a significant driver of growth with the UAE’s digital economy projected to increase by $140 billion by 2031. The country has made significant investments in digital transformation across sectors that support the national goal of doubling the contribution of the digital economy to the UAE's non-oil GDP from to over 20 per cent within the next 10 years, it added.
Last year, General Atlantic named Samir Assaf as chairman of its Mena business to increase investment in the region.
Earlier this year, the company acquired sustainable investment firm Actis, which is also evaluating several deals in the Middle East, amid the region’s push for green energy and global hydrogen ambitions.
The pipeline of potential investment deals is growing for Actis in the region, its chairman Torbjorn Caesar, told The National in October.
“We are very active here and we're looking at deals in the region – power generation and distribution, district cooling and distributed generation, meaning solar rooftop type [assets] … we have more in the pipeline in these sectors, and we like them a lot,” he said.
“There are four active deals that we're looking at right now”, which the company expects to close next year, he added. He did not reveal the size or the investment value of the potential deals.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Fitness problems in men's tennis
Andy Murray - hip
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Stan Wawrinka - knee
Kei Nishikori - wrist
Marin Cilic - adductor
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
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Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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Company Profile
Company name: OneOrder
Started: October 2021
Founders: Tamer Amer and Karim Maurice
Based: Cairo, Egypt
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Sugary teas and iced coffees
The tax authority is yet to release a list of the taxed products, but it appears likely that sugary iced teas and cold coffees will be hit.
For instance, the non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.
Cold coffee brands are likely to be hit too. Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.
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Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
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AT4 Ultimate, as tested
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Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Director: Romany Saad
Starring: Mirfat Amin, Boumi Fouad and Tariq Al Ibyari
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Soft power was first mentioned in 1990 by former US Defence Secretary Joseph Nye.
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This is traditionally achieved by proving that you share morals and values.
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2010 - Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing)
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2008 - Lewis Hamilton (McLaren)
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Dubai Bling season three
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