UAE's AIM Startup signs two agreements with Saudi institutions



The UAE's AIM Startup, an initiative by the Ministry of Economy and part of the Annual Investment Meeting (AIM), has signed agreements with two Saudi Arabian institutions to help propel entrepreneurship in the region.

AIM Startup signed an agreement with Prince Mohammad bin Salman College of Business and Badir Programme for Technology Incubators as part of plans to grow the regional entrepreneurship community.

"Entrepreneurship is an important solution to the needs of the Arab youth and we have seen a major shift in government policies to empower the youth with the right tools so that they can become job creators, instead of becoming jobseekers," said Dawood Al Shezawi, the chief executive of AIM Startup.

"AIM Startup – with a theme of technology for sustainable development and inclusive growth – is going to become the epicentre of entrepreneurship and start-up movement in the Arab World."

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AIM Startup, which was launched in 2017 as an initiative of the Ministry of Economy to connect start-ups with investors and business partners from other parts of the world, will take place during the UAE's Annual Investment Meeting, from April 9 to 11, 2018, in Dubai.

AIM Startup will host the second edition of its annual Innovation Showcase and Pitch Competition at the April event.

The number of start-up funding deals in the UAE surged in the first half of the year, according to the start-up online community platform Magnitt, following Amazon's high-profile acquisition of local online retailer Souq.com, and a US$150 million investment by Saudi Arabia's Kingdom Holding and Germany's Daimler in the UAE ride-hailing service Careem.   

The rise in the number of investments also comes amid intensifying efforts by governments in the region to help small businesses get off the ground as they seek to diversify economies away from oil revenues, cultivate talent and promote entrepreneurship. 

Around $140m was invested in 87 transactions, excluding money invested in Souq and Careem, during the first half of the year compared to 75 deals valued at $193m in the first half of 2016, according to Magnitt.  

The flourishing of start-ups in the UAE comes amid intensifying efforts by governments to boost small and medium-sized industries through mentorship initiatives such as the one undertaken by the Abu Dhabi Global Market, the Emirate's nascent financial hub. 

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Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
 
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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Friday (UAE kick-off times)

Cologne v Hoffenheim (11.30pm)

Saturday

Hertha Berlin v RB Leipzig (6.30pm)

Schalke v Fortuna Dusseldof (6.30pm)

Mainz v Union Berlin (6.30pm)

Paderborn v Augsburg (6.30pm)

Bayern Munich v Borussia Dortmund (9.30pm)

Sunday

Borussia Monchengladbach v Werder Bremen (4.30pm)

Wolfsburg v Bayer Leverkusen (6.30pm)

SC Freiburg v Eintracht Frankfurt (9on)

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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Wednesday April 24: Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship, 11am-6pm

Thursday April 25:  Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship, 11am-5pm

Friday April 26: Finals, 3-6pm

Saturday April 27: Awards ceremony, 4pm and 8pm

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