Sri-Lankan born billionaire and co-founder of Galleon hedge fund group Raj Rajaratnam leaves U.S. District Court after jury deliberations in New York, Tuesday, May 10, 2011. Rajaratnam, who is at the center of the largest U.S. crackdown on hedge-fund insider trading in U.S. history, is accused of earning $63 million on illegal stock tips. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
Sri-Lankan born billionaire and co-founder of Galleon hedge fund group Raj Rajaratnam leaves U.S. District Court after jury deliberations in New York, Tuesday, May 10, 2011. Rajaratnam, who is at the center of the largest U.S. crackdown on hedge-fund insider trading in U.S. history, is accused of earning $63 million on illegal stock tips. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
Sri-Lankan born billionaire and co-founder of Galleon hedge fund group Raj Rajaratnam leaves U.S. District Court after jury deliberations in New York, Tuesday, May 10, 2011. Rajaratnam, who is at the center of the largest U.S. crackdown on hedge-fund insider trading in U.S. history, is accused of earning $63 million on illegal stock tips. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
Sri-Lankan born billionaire and co-founder of Galleon hedge fund group Raj Rajaratnam leaves U.S. District Court after jury deliberations in New York, Tuesday, May 10, 2011. Rajaratnam, who is at the

Rajaratnam guilty on all counts


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Raj Rajaratnam, the billionaire hedge fund founder, was convicted yesterday on all counts of fraud and conspiracy in Wall Street's biggest insider trading trial for years.

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The New York federal jury found Rajaratnam, 53, the head of the Galleon Group, guilty on all 14 counts. He now faces up to 25 years in prison.

The marathon case was seen as a huge assault by prosecutors on Wall Street corruption.

Born in Sri Lanka, Rajaratnam was accused of earning US$63.8 million (Dh234.3m) through illegal tips from company insiders to give him an unfair edge in hedge fund trading.

A jury in the Manhattan court returned its verdict yesterday after hearing evidence that Rajaratnam engaged in a seven-year conspiracy to trade on inside information from businessmen including directors of public companies such as Goldman Sachs.

The trial came as Preet Bharara, the Manhattan US attorney , promised to crack down on "rampant" illegal trading on Wall Street.

"He joins the pantheon of Ivan Boesky and Gordon Gekko," said Peter Henning, a professor at Wayne State University Law School in Detroit, citing both the real-life stock trader who was jailed after pleading guilty to conspiracy in 1987 and the fictional Wall Street film character who symbolised the financial scandals of the 1980s.

"It is a defining case," Mr Henning said before the verdict was handed down.

Rajaratnam's lawyers had argued the information was already public as it had been discussed in analysts' reports.

* with Agence France-Presse and Reuters

The National's picks

4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young

Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

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Men's football draw

Group A: UAE, Spain, South Africa, Jamaica

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Group D: Oman, Austria, Rwanda

Who's who in Yemen conflict

Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government

Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council

Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south

Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory

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.”

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The biog

Prefers vegetables and fish to meat and would choose salad over pizza

Walks daily as part of regular exercise routine 

France is her favourite country to visit

Has written books and manuals on women’s education, first aid and health for the family

Family: Husband, three sons and a daughter

Fathiya Nadhari's instructions to her children was to give back to the country

The children worked as young volunteers in social, education and health campaigns

Her motto is to never stop working for the country

Desert Warrior

Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley

Director: Rupert Wyatt

Rating: 3/5

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets