Bitcoin experienced another weekend wobble on Saturday, as the world's biggest cryptocurrency plunged more than 11 per cent.
The market capitalisation of the world's biggest cryptocurrency, which had soared above $1 trillion in April, fell below $600 billion as the Bitcoin price dropped to $30,411.75 at 12.59pm UAE time on the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange.
Most other cryptocurrencies witnessed similar declines, with Ether also dropping more than 10 per cent to $1,733.98.
On Friday, reports emerged of the disappearance of billions of dollars worth of Bitcoin from Africrypt, a South African-based cryptocurrency-based investment firm.
A law firm representing the company's investors said about 69,000 ($3.6bn) of Bitcoin had gone missing, alongside Ameer and Raees Cajee, the founders of the company.
Hanekom Attorneys said the brothers running the company had written to clients on April 13 saying that their systems had been hacked, and that client accounts and client wallets had been "compromised". The letter also said Africrypt had halted operations.
Cape Town-based law firm Hanekom Attorneys said the brothers had vanished. It has been employed by investors and has reported the case to the police.
"We were immediately suspicious as the announcement implored investors not to take legal action," the firm told Bloomberg. "Africrypt employees lost access to the back-end platforms seven days before the alleged hack."
However, in a separate statement to media on Friday, a lawyer for the brothers said they "categorically denied" they had absconded with the funds.
"They maintain that it was a hack, and they were fleeced of these assets," lawyer John Oosthuizen told the BBC.
In a statement issued on Thursday, South Africa's Financial Sector Conduct Authority said it was aware of concerns regarding Africrypt, but added cryptocurrencies are not currently regulated in the country "and consequently the FSCA is not in a position to take regulatory action".
"The Authority has warned the public and continues to do so with respect to the high-risk nature of investing in crypto assets," the regulator said.
"Besides the underlying concerns around the suitability of crypto assets as an asset class for investment, due to the lack of an underlying business model and the risk of large fluctuations in the market price in most cases, the authority is concerned over the large number of scams being perpetrated by persons purporting to provide the crypto asset to the public."
The regulator said it is in the process of declaring cryptocurrencies to be a financial product in a bid to "protect the public".
If the coins prove to be unrecoverable, the losses incurred would be bigger than experienced in the cryptocurrency market during the whole of last year. Losses through fraud and crime in 2020 stood at $1.9 billion, down from $4.5bn in 2019, according to CipherTrace.
"Despite advancements in tracing technology and bolstered security at exchanges, it is still impossible to prevent outright scams from occurring, underlining the importance of due diligence for investors before getting involved," CipherTrace's chief marketing officer and chief financial analyst John Jefferies said in a note to clients on Saturday.
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
Indika
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2011%20Bit%20Studios%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Odd%20Meter%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsole%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PlayStation%205%2C%20PC%20and%20Xbox%20series%20X%2FS%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
NINE WINLESS GAMES
Arsenal 2-2 Crystal Palace (Oct 27, PL)
Liverpool 5-5 Arsenal (Oct 30, EFL)
Arsenal 1-1 Wolves (Nov 02, PL)
Vitoria Guimaraes 1-1 Arsenal (Nov 6, Europa)
Leicester 2-0 Arsenal (Nov 9, PL)
Arsenal 2-2 Southampton (Nov 23, PL)
Arsenal 1-2 Eintracht Frankfurt (Nov 28, Europa)
Norwich 2-2 Arsenal (Dec 01, PL)
Arsenal 1-2 Brighton (Dec 05, PL)
The specs: 2019 GMC Yukon Denali
Price, base: Dh306,500
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Power: 420hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 621Nm @ 4,100rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.9L / 100km
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.”
Brief scores:
Manchester City 2
Gundogan 27', De Bruyne 85'
Crystal Palace 3
Schlupp 33', Townsend 35', Milivojevic 51' (pen)
Man of the Match: Andros Townsend (Crystal Palace)
EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS
Estijaba – 8001717 – number to call to request coronavirus testing
Ministry of Health and Prevention – 80011111
Dubai Health Authority – 800342 – The number to book a free video or voice consultation with a doctor or connect to a local health centre
Emirates airline – 600555555
Etihad Airways – 600555666
Ambulance – 998
Knowledge and Human Development Authority – 8005432 ext. 4 for Covid-19 queries
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
