Bank Muscat, the sultanate’s largest lender, is considering a sale of its brokerage unit as one of several “strategic options” for the business, the bank said in a bourse filingtoday.
The lender did not give a size or time frame for the potential sale of the unit. In the meantime the division, one of 21 licensed brokerages in Oman, will continue its operations with no impact on customers, the bank said.
Bank Muscat does not break out the financial performance of the brokerage business in its annual reports. In addition to serving foreign and domestic clients within Oman, the unit provides brokerage services on some other regional bourses through a network of partners, the bank’s website says.
According to stock exchange data, Bank Muscat’s brokerage had the third biggest share of Oman securities trading last year with 10.6 percent. The total value of securities trading in 2013 was 239.1 million rials ($623 million).
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Tickets for the August 3 Fight Night, held in partnership with the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, went on sale earlier this month, through www.etihadarena.ae and www.ticketmaster.ae.
Indika
Developer: 11 Bit Studios
Publisher: Odd Meter
Console: PlayStation 5, PC and Xbox series X/S
Rating: 4/5
While you're here
What is graphene?
Graphene is a single layer of carbon atoms arranged like honeycomb.
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were "playing about" with sticky tape and graphite - the material used as "lead" in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But as they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment had led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
At the time, many believed it was impossible for such thin crystalline materials to be stable. But examined under a microscope, the material remained stable, and when tested was found to have incredible properties.
It is many times times stronger than steel, yet incredibly lightweight and flexible. It is electrically and thermally conductive but also transparent. The world's first 2D material, it is one million times thinner than the diameter of a single human hair.
But the 'sticky tape' method would not work on an industrial scale. Since then, scientists have been working on manufacturing graphene, to make use of its incredible properties.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics. Their discovery meant physicists could study a new class of two-dimensional materials with unique properties.
UAE'S YOUNG GUNS
1 Esha Oza, age 26, 79 matches
2 Theertha Satish, age 20, 66 matches
3 Khushi Sharma, age 21, 65 matches
4 Kavisha Kumari, age 21, 79 matches
5 Heena Hotchandani, age 23, 16 matches
6 Rinitha Rajith, age 18, 34 matches
7 Samaira Dharnidharka, age 17, 53 matches
8 Vaishnave Mahesh, age 17, 68 matches
9 Lavanya Keny, age 17, 33 matches
10 Siya Gokhale, age 18, 33 matches
11 Indhuja Nandakumar, age 18, 46 matches
Sour Grapes
Author: Zakaria Tamer
Publisher: Syracuse University Press
Pages: 176
SPEC SHEET: APPLE M3 MACBOOK AIR (13")
Processor: Apple M3, 8-core CPU, up to 10-core CPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Display: 13.6-inch Liquid Retina, 2560 x 1664, 224ppi, 500 nits, True Tone, wide colour
Memory: 8/16/24GB
Storage: 256/512GB / 1/2TB
I/O: Thunderbolt 3/USB-4 (2), 3.5mm audio, Touch ID
Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3
Battery: 52.6Wh lithium-polymer, up to 18 hours, MagSafe charging
Camera: 1080p FaceTime HD
Video: Support for Apple ProRes, HDR with Dolby Vision, HDR10
Audio: 4-speaker system, wide stereo, support for Dolby Atmos, Spatial Audio and dynamic head tracking (with AirPods)
Colours: Midnight, silver, space grey, starlight
In the box: MacBook Air, 30W/35W dual-port/70w power adapter, USB-C-to-MagSafe cable, 2 Apple stickers
Price: From Dh4,599
Specs: 2024 McLaren Artura Spider
Engine: 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 and electric motor
Max power: 700hp at 7,500rpm
Max torque: 720Nm at 2,250rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
0-100km/h: 3.0sec
Top speed: 330kph
Price: From Dh1.14 million ($311,000)
On sale: Now
COMPANY PROFILE
Company: Eco Way
Started: December 2023
Founder: Ivan Kroshnyi
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Electric vehicles
Investors: Bootstrapped with undisclosed funding. Looking to raise funds from outside
The Way It Was: My Life with Frank Sinatra by Eliot Weisman and Jennifer Valoppi
Hachette Books
Profile
Name: Carzaty
Founders: Marwan Chaar and Hassan Jaffar
Launched: 2017
Employees: 22
Based: Dubai and Muscat
Sector: Automobile retail
Funding to date: $5.5 million
if you go
The flights
Flydubai flies to Podgorica or nearby Tivat via Sarajevo from Dh2,155 return including taxes. Turkish Airlines flies from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Podgorica via Istanbul; alternatively, fly with Flydubai from Dubai to Belgrade and take a short flight with Montenegro Air to Podgorica. Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Podgorica via Belgrade. Flights cost from about Dh3,000 return including taxes. There are buses from Podgorica to Plav.
The tour
While you can apply for a permit for the route yourself, it’s best to travel with an agency that will arrange it for you. These include Zbulo in Albania (www.zbulo.org) or Zalaz in Montenegro (www.zalaz.me).
EU's 20-point migration plan
1. Send EU border guards to Balkans
2. €40 million for training and surveillance
3. Review EU border protection
4. Reward countries that fund Balkans
5. Help Balkans improve asylum system
6. Improve migrant reception facilities
7. Close gaps in EU registration system
8. Run pilots of faster asylum system
9. Improve relocation of migrants within EU
10. Bolster migration unit in Greece
11. Tackle smuggling at Serbia/Hungary border
12. Implement €30 million anti-smuggling plan
13. Sanctions on transport linked to smuggling
14. Expand pilot deportation scheme in Bosnia
15. Training for Balkans to deport migrants
16. Joint task forces with Balkans and countries of origin
17. Close loopholes in Balkan visa policy
18. Monitor migration laws passed in Balkans
19. Use visa-free travel as leverage over Balkans
20. Joint EU messages to Balkans and countries of origin
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, Group B
Barcelona v Inter Milan
Camp Nou, Barcelona
Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Paris Can Wait
Dir: Eleanor Coppola
Starring: Alec Baldwin, Diane Lane, Arnaud Viard
Two stars