Mobile app downloads in the UAE grew by 23 per cent annually in the first half of 2022 as smartphone use increased due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Finance-related apps registered a surge in demand, with downloads jumping 183 per cent during the six-month period, the latest data from AppsFlyer shows.
Downloads of travel, entertainment, social and food-related apps also grew by 36 per cent, 31 per cent, 30 per cent and 15 per cent, respectively, during the period.
However, retail app downloads dropped 9 per cent as more people visited physical stores after the UAE eased pandemic-related restrictions amid a lower number of infections.
“It is clear that as we emerge into the post-pandemic world, the accelerated momentum towards mobile that we have witnessed over the last two years has now created a mobile-first mindset among consumers and businesses,” said Samer Saad, Middle East manager at AppsFlyer.
“Our findings indicate a growing preference for mobile apps as the primary engagement channel. While this is ushering in a new era of convenience for consumers, it has greatly increased the competitiveness of the space.”
As demand for mobile apps grows, businesses must now seek “innovative and measurable means of enhancing user experiences and increasing engagement on their mobile apps”, he said.
The latest data comes at a time when consumer spending continues to rise in the UAE as the economy recovers from the pandemic.
Spending on retail items grew 16 per cent, year on year, in the first six months of 2022, while spending on non-retail goods rose 31 per cent in the same period, mall operator Majid Al Futtaim said in its State of the UAE Retail Economy report this month.
The UAE economy is set to post its strongest annual expansion since 2011 after it grew by 8.2 per cent in the first three months of this year on higher oil prices and measures to mitigate the impact of the pandemic, according the UAE Central Bank.
The Arab world’s second-largest economy, which expanded 3.8 per cent in 2021, is expected to grow by 5.4 per cent and 4.2 per cent in 2022 and 2023, respectively, according to the latest projections by the regulator.
The International Monetary Fund projects that the UAE economy will grow 4.2 per cent this year while Emirates NBD forecasts a growth rate of 5.7 per cent and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank expects a 6 per cent expansion, supported by a sharp rise in the oil sector.
The AppsFlyer study shows that consumer spending on mobile apps is also growing.
Over the one-year period between March 2021 and February 2022, in-app purchases increased 9 per cent, with finance app purchases recording a threefold jump while spending through e-commerce apps rose 41 per cent.
“While there clearly appears to be a growing preference among UAE consumers to engage with businesses via apps, the fact that nine out of 10 UAE organisations today offer a mobile app makes this a highly competitive space,” the study said.
“For this reason, mobile app marketers have a key role to play in driving the success of their organisations’ mobile-first strategies.”
Remarketing, the tactic of focusing on users who have shown some interest in the brand, in particular, has also proven to be “highly effective” with UAE consumers, with conversions from this activity growing 43 per cent in the first half of 2022, compared with the first half of 2021, the study said.
“In today’s mobile-first world, growing app installs and increasing purchases made via mobile apps are two sides of the same coin,” Mr Saad said.
“To achieve what are now business imperatives calls for a multifaceted approach, combining a focus on exceptional mobile user experience and highly strategic marketing efforts.”
The story of Edge
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, established Edge in 2019.
It brought together 25 state-owned and independent companies specialising in weapons systems, cyber protection and electronic warfare.
Edge has an annual revenue of $5 billion and employs more than 12,000 people.
Some of the companies include Nimr, a maker of armoured vehicles, Caracal, which manufactures guns and ammunitions company, Lahab
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
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.”
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
