Morning round-up: Nasser al Shaikh recedes from public world

Nasser al Shaikh has dropped three more of his roles, The National reports today. On top of stepping down as chairman of Deyaar Development on Sunday, he has now resigned from Dubai Islamic Bank, National Bonds Corporation and Taaleem. He remains, for now, the chairman of Amlak Finance. This all comes just weeks after he was replaced as director general of the Dubai Department of Finance without an official reason. I don't expect we'll be seeing much of him anymore, despite the fact that he is one of the original architects of the stimulus plan for the economy and the disbursement of the US$10bn of recovery funds obtained through a bond to the Central Bank.

Take heed, investors. Executives at Al Barakah, the property development company whose chief executive is sought by Dubai Police over allegedly bouncing cheques worth more than Dh40 million (US$10.8m), have invited investors to drop all claims against the firm in return for shares in a new holding company, Nathalie Gillet reports. Investors don't seem to be buying this one hook, line and sinker just yet, so we'll see how this plays out. Nathalie also has a story about the "forgotten victims of the slump", i.e. property brokers.

Deyaar Development is focusing on building villas and affordable housing in the region, Parag Deulgaonkar reports in Emirates Business 24/7. The company is also adhering payment plans to construction milestones, a system which has become the new industry standard.

Damac Properties encourages people to buy property now (surprise, surprise!), be patient with delays (it's just your life savings), and resolve their issues without going to court (disputes are expensive for developers). Check out Peter Riddoch's Q-and-A at 7Days here.