UAE Exchange, one of the oldest money transfer houses in the Middle East, expects to grow the volume of remittances it handles by up to 10 per cent in 2018, driven by improved economic growth forecasts, rising liquidity in the region and new acquisitions, its chief executive said.
"Over the last year and a half there has been an increased amount of remittance activity worldwide and we are seeing that reflected in our business with substantial, double-digit growth overall," Promoth Manghat told The National. Its remittances are expected to grow by 8 to 10 per cent year-on-year in 2018, he added.
Global remittances grew 7 per cent to $613 billion in 2017, according to the World Bank.
The US dollar comeback in recent months following a period of weakness has boosted Asian currencies in particular. UAE Exchange has seen “a good flow of money” to India, Pakistan and the Philippines, as well as Egypt and elsewhere.
“People are taking advantage of improved economic sentiment and the last three months in the UAE has been especially positive,” Mr Manghat said. He said the government’s plans to relax foreign ownership rules and offer long-term visas to some expats by the end of this year would “create new jobs in emerging industry sectors, resulting in increased economic activity and higher remittance flows”. Rising liquidity in the GCC would also boost remittance volumes, he said.
UAE Exchange, which was founded in 1980 by India-born businessman BR Shetty, operates in 45 markets worldwide and handled close to $30bn of remittances last year, representing 46 per cent of the global remittances market. It is a private company and does not break down volumes by region.
In 2016, the company launched a $250 million to $300m acquisition spree to boost its technology and logistics capabilities in a competitive market. It has spent 40 to 45 per cent of its investment pot to date and is in advanced talks with three firms on deals to complete this year, Mr Manghat told The National.
Previous deals include the acquisition of online remittance house Remit2India and a tie-up with US blockchain firm Ripple, and early-stage investments in technology start-ups Swych and the UAE’s Souqalmal. In 2015, the company bought UK exchange house Travelex for $1.1bn.
“We’ve been doing organic investments in technology firms and will continue to do so, focusing on opportunities to enhance our capacity and better serve our customers,” Mr Manghat said. “We are gaining good momentum.”
Acquisitions will be overseen by UAE Exchange’s new holding company, Finablr, set up by Mr Shetty in April this year to house all of his financial services interests, which include UAE Exchange, Travelex, Xpress Money, Remit2India, Unimoni and Ditto.
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UAE Exchange had been planning an initial public offering of its merged Travelex entity on the London Stock Exchange, where Mr Shetty’s other major business interest NMC Health is listed. The plan now is to list the entire Finablr holding company “when the time is right”, Mr Manghat said.
"We have the prequalification for London," Mr Shetty, chairman of Finablr, told Reuters in April. He confirmed to The National that London remains the preferred location for a listing. "It's better to go there, where I have investors who trust me, than to an unknown market," he said but declined to say when the share sale might happen or what percentage would be listed. Mr Manghat said banks had yet to be hired for the process. "We are in the very early stages."
In the meantime, Finablr will cement its role as the investment and innovation lead for the financial services firms under its umbrella, while from a customer-facing point of view they will continue to operate as separate brands.
FInablr also plans to launch a string of "innovation hubs" focusing on research and development in areas of ‘fintech’ such as blockchain – which the company views as potentially useful in speeding up the money transfer process and reducing costs. The first hub will launch in London in the next three months, followed by the opening of a blockchain research laboratory in Dallas.
Money transfer houses such as UAE Exchange are subject to increasingly rigorous regulations as part of the global fight against money laundering, and Mr Manghat said he welcomed this.
The UAE Central Bank’s decision to downgrade the licences of seven exchange houses in the emirates this month is a positive thing for UAE Exchange because it shows “we have a hands-on regulator that enables the industry to operate in a professional manner”, the chief executive said.
ZAYED SUSTAINABILITY PRIZE
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
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Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
Tips from the expert
Dobromir Radichkov, chief data officer at dubizzle and Bayut, offers a few tips for UAE residents looking to earn some cash from pre-loved items.
- Sellers should focus on providing high-quality used goods at attractive prices to buyers.
- It’s important to use clear and appealing photos, with catchy titles and detailed descriptions to capture the attention of prospective buyers.
- Try to advertise a realistic price to attract buyers looking for good deals, especially in the current environment where consumers are significantly more price-sensitive.
- Be creative and look around your home for valuable items that you no longer need but might be useful to others.
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
Haemoglobin disorders explained
Thalassaemia is part of a family of genetic conditions affecting the blood known as haemoglobin disorders.
Haemoglobin is a substance in the red blood cells that carries oxygen and a lack of it triggers anemia, leaving patients very weak, short of breath and pale.
The most severe type of the condition is typically inherited when both parents are carriers. Those patients often require regular blood transfusions - about 450 of the UAE's 2,000 thalassaemia patients - though frequent transfusions can lead to too much iron in the body and heart and liver problems.
The condition mainly affects people of Mediterranean, South Asian, South-East Asian and Middle Eastern origin. Saudi Arabia recorded 45,892 cases of carriers between 2004 and 2014.
A World Health Organisation study estimated that globally there are at least 950,000 'new carrier couples' every year and annually there are 1.33 million at-risk pregnancies.
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
The five pillars of Islam
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Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
How to keep control of your emotions
If your investment decisions are being dictated by emotions such as fear, greed, hope, frustration and boredom, it is time for a rethink, Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading platform IG, says.
Greed
Greedy investors trade beyond their means, open more positions than usual or hold on to positions too long to chase an even greater gain. “All too often, they incur a heavy loss and may even wipe out the profit already made.
Tip: Ignore the short-term hype, noise and froth and invest for the long-term plan, based on sound fundamentals.
Fear
The risk of making a loss can cloud decision-making. “This can cause you to close out a position too early, or miss out on a profit by being too afraid to open a trade,” he says.
Tip: Start with a plan, and stick to it. For added security, consider placing stops to reduce any losses and limits to lock in profits.
Hope
While all traders need hope to start trading, excessive optimism can backfire. Too many traders hold on to a losing trade because they believe that it will reverse its trend and become profitable.
Tip: Set realistic goals. Be happy with what you have earned, rather than frustrated by what you could have earned.
Frustration
Traders can get annoyed when the markets have behaved in unexpected ways and generates losses or fails to deliver anticipated gains.
Tip: Accept in advance that asset price movements are completely unpredictable and you will suffer losses at some point. These can be managed, say, by attaching stops and limits to your trades.
Boredom
Too many investors buy and sell because they want something to do. They are trading as entertainment, rather than in the hope of making money. As well as making bad decisions, the extra dealing charges eat into returns.
Tip: Open an online demo account and get your thrills without risking real money.
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COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: SimpliFi
Started: August 2021
Founder: Ali Sattar
Based: UAE
Industry: Finance, technology
Investors: 4DX, Rally Cap, Raed, Global Founders, Sukna and individuals
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
