Keren Bobker bought a signed painting by actor Tony Curtis for US$700; it is worth around $2,500 now. Satish Kumar / The National
Keren Bobker bought a signed painting by actor Tony Curtis for US$700; it is worth around $2,500 now. Satish Kumar / The National
Keren Bobker bought a signed painting by actor Tony Curtis for US$700; it is worth around $2,500 now. Satish Kumar / The National
Keren Bobker bought a signed painting by actor Tony Curtis for US$700; it is worth around $2,500 now. Satish Kumar / The National

Money & Me: The National columnist Keren Bobker enjoys freedom with flexibility


Alice Haine
  • English
  • Arabic

Keren Bobker is a senior consultant of the financial advisory company Holborn Assets. The Briton, 49, who moved to the UAE 10 years ago, is also The National's On Your Side columnist, writing almost 400 columns for the Money section over the past seven-and-a-half years.

How did your upbringing shape your attitude towards money?

My parents are fairly sensible with money, so I was taught to save before spending. They certainly weren’t mean though, so sensible pur­chases that were either needed or brought pleasure were fine, provided they were affordable. I was also taught that it’s important to be generous to those in need and that money is good to have, but it’s a means to an end rather than a goal itself. That’s pretty much my attitude these days.

How much did you get paid for your first job?

I did a lot of babysitting in my teens which was quite lucrative, paying up to £10 (Dh53) an evening. My first full-time job was with an insurance com­pany; I was paid around £5,000 a year. It was a long time ago.

Are you spender or saver?

These days I am much more of a saver, but I am certainly not averse to spending on things I like or want. I am not much of a shopper, so that reduces random spending and I apparently shop like a man in that I go to stores with a purpose and leave when I find what I want. It’s a different story at a farmers’ or antique market though.

Have you ever had a month where you feared you could not pay the bills?

I had a few of them in my 20s, when UK mortgage rates were in double figures and my income wasn’t very high. Not a feeling I ever want to have again.

Where do you save your money?

I keep a significant amount in cash offshore due to the uncertainly of being largely self-employed and general global volatility. The majority of my money is invested in equities. Due to my work I understand the risks and how to manage it. I don’t currently own any property as I sold my UK house and still haven’t decided where I want to end up. I save so I’ll be able to buy a home for cash – once I decide.

Do you prefer paying by credit card or in cash?

I like cold, hard cash as it seems more real, but these days I tend to put much of my spending on my credit card. It is paid off in full automatically each month and I benefit from a reward scheme. I never build up balances on cards as there is no need to pay interest unnecessarily, but they are a useful tool.

What has been your best investment?

In terms of percentage return, possibly a signed painting by the late actor Tony Curtis that I bought shortly before he died. I paid US$700 including shipping in 2010 and it is estimated to be worth around $2,500 now.

What do you most regret spending money on and how much was it?

A Victorian house I bought many, many years ago. Property prices fell across the UK and I had an old house that needed a lot of work. I paid around £80,000 for it but made little profit when I sold it on a few years later. I should have rented, especially as I was only in my early 20s.

What financial advice would you offer your younger self?

Waste less money on clothes and don’t buy them using credit cards, as they end up costing more.

Do you have a plan for the future?

Yes, but it is very flexible. I have a rough idea of what I want to achieve and how to do it, but I don’t like my life to be too fixed. I work with people every day to plan for the future and there is more to it than having a five-year written plan.

If you won Dh1 million, what would you do with it?

I’d invest most of it but I would probably treat myself to a diamond tennis bracelet. I’ve fancied one for years but am far too sensible to buy one. I’d also pay for my brother and his family to fly from the US to stay with me for a holiday.

arayer@thenational.ae

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Pharaoh's curse

British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.

Scotland v Ireland:

Scotland (15-1): Stuart Hogg; Tommy Seymour, Huw Jones, Sam Johnson, Sean Maitland; Finn Russell, Greig Laidlaw (capt); Josh Strauss, James Ritchie, Ryan Wilson; Jonny Gray, Grant Gilchrist; Simon Berghan, Stuart McInally, Allan Dell

Replacements: Fraser Brown, Jamie Bhatti, D'arcy Rae, Ben Toolis, Rob Harley, Ali Price, Pete Horne, Blair Kinghorn

Coach: Gregor Townsend (SCO)

Ireland (15-1): Rob Kearney; Keith Earls, Chris Farrell, Bundee Aki, Jacob Stockdale; Jonathan Sexton, Conor Murray; Jack Conan, Sean O'Brien, Peter O'Mahony; James Ryan, Quinn Roux; Tadhg Furlong, Rory Best (capt), Cian Healy

Replacements: Sean Cronin, Dave Kilcoyne, Andrew Porter, Ultan Dillane, Josh van der Flier, John Cooney, Joey Carbery, Jordan Larmour

Coach: Joe Schmidt (NZL)

Company profile

Date started: Founded in May 2017 and operational since April 2018

Founders: co-founder and chief executive, Doaa Aref; Dr Rasha Rady, co-founder and chief operating officer.

Based: Cairo, Egypt

Sector: Health-tech

Size: 22 employees

Funding: Seed funding 

Investors: Flat6labs, 500 Falcons, three angel investors

The team

Photographer: Mateusz Stefanowski at Art Factory 
Videographer: Jear Valasquez 
Fashion director: Sarah Maisey
Make-up: Gulum Erzincan at Art Factory 
Model: Randa at Art Factory Videographer’s assistant: Zanong Magat 
Photographer’s assistant: Sophia Shlykova 
With thanks to Jubail Mangrove Park, Jubail Island, Abu Dhabi 

 

Simran

Director Hansal Mehta

Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Soham Shah, Esha Tiwari Pandey

Three stars

In numbers

Number of Chinese tourists coming to UAE in 2017 was... 1.3m

Alibaba’s new ‘Tech Town’  in Dubai is worth... $600m

China’s investment in the MIddle East in 2016 was... $29.5bn

The world’s most valuable start-up in 2018, TikTok, is valued at... $75bn

Boost to the UAE economy of 5G connectivity will be... $269bn 

Brief scores:

Arsenal 4

Xhaka 25', Lacazette 55', Ramsey 79', Aubameyang 83'

Fulham 1

Kamara 69'

How the bonus system works

The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.

The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.

There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).

All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.

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More from Armen Sarkissian
What is the FNC?

The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning. 
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval. 
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
 

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