Former Iranian foreign minister and 2015 nuclear deal negotiator Mohammad Javad Zarif has been appointed as Vice President for Strategic Affairs by Iran's new reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian.
Mr Pezeshkian has aligned himself with other reformists and moderates and has often been alongside Mr Zarif, who is the President's main advocate and has been involved in the selection process for the cabinet.
Mr Zarif, who served as foreign minister from 2013 to 2021 under the presidency of Hassan Rouhani, rose to prominence as he led Iran's negotiations over the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
"You are tasked with overseeing major national and international developments, as well as how far we succeed in achieving the goals of the constitution," Mr Pezeshkian told Mr Zarif in a letter of appointment published by the Irna news agency on Thursday evening.
In 2018, the Trump administration unilaterally withdrew the US from the deal, which included Russia, China, France, the UK and Germany. Western powers have since accused Iran of expanding its nuclear programme and enriching uranium to 60 per cent, which is near weapons-grade levels.
The US has imposed several economic sanctions on the country.
Iran resumed nuclear talks with western powers in 2021 under the presidency of Ebrahim Raisi, who was killed in a helicopter crash in May. The meetings failed to revive the agreement.
Mr Pezeshkian, who has come to power at a time when Iran faces domestic challenges, has vowed to introduce reforms. Mr Zarif's appointment could be further indication of a willingness to return to negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme.
Mr Zarif has generally advocated better relations with western countries and has backed negotiations with the US, but he returns to government at a time of escalating tension in the region, worsened by the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran. Mr Haniyeh was in Iran to attend Mr Pezeshkian's inauguration ceremony.
Mr Zarif was at the centre of controversy in 2021, when he was heard in leaked audio recordings laying out power struggles within the regime and criticising Iranian commander Qassem Suleimani, who was killed in a US drone strike in 2020. The leak sent shock waves through Iran a month before Mr Zarif was set to run in presidential elections and drew criticism from the country's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Although refraining from naming Mr Zarif directly, Mr Khamenei described the recordings as a "big mistake that must not be made by an official". Mr Zarif offered a direct and extensive apology.
Mr Zarif recently endorsed Mr Khamenei’s stance on upholding a controversial law regarding nuclear negotiations. “Regardless of personal views, the Strategic Action Law regarding nuclear negotiations is the country’s law and must be adhered to,” he said on X.
The law was introduced in 2020 to counter sanctions and increase nuclear activities unless the US returned to the deal. Although criticised by moderates as being an obstacle to returning to nuclear talks, Mr Khamenei last week emphasised the importance of adhering to the law.
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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.
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“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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