Rafael Nadal
Whether or not Rafael Nadal makes another dollar off the gentleman’s sport, his post-tennis future is assured.
Although Nadal has had to sit out this year’s French Open, the tennis pro’s investment company Aspemir had a turnover of €20 million ($21.5 million) in 2021, according to Spanish newspaper El Pais, quoting registry filings.
The results include earnings of €11.4 million, a jump of 102 per cent compared with the same period in 2020.
Through Aspemir, the Spaniard controls 20 companies. His mother, Ana Maria Parera, is sole administrator and his father, Sebastian Nadal, is a proxy, the newspaper said.
Aspemir’s investments include the Tatel restaurant group, luxury property company Mabel, a sports complex in Nadal’s hometown of Manacor and several renewable energy ventures.
Nadal wins 2022 French Open – in pictures
The company also owns 18 properties, including sites in upmarket areas of Madrid and Barcelona.
Nadal has a net worth of €295 million, Spanish newspaper El Mundo calculated in February.
The figure represents a 31.1 per cent increase over the preceding 12 months, a difference of about €70 million.
In 2022, he earned $9.9 million from tournaments, including a 22nd Grand Slam title at the French Open.
Nadal is the 196th-richest person in Spain, according to El Mundo. However, he is one of the richest tennis players in the world.
ATP Tour data shows the clay-court specialist has earned $134.6 million over his 22-year career, putting him behind leader Novak Djokovic, whose tournament winnings totalled $167.2 million as of June 8.
Counting endorsements and appearance fees, Nadal’s career earnings amount to more than $500 million, according to Forbes magazine.
Among the major brands he has worked with are Nike, Kia, Babolat, Santander, Richard Mille, Lanvin and Emporio Armani.
Over a typical year, Nadal’s annual pre-tax earnings amount to about $40 million from all sources, according to wealth tracking website Celebrity Net Worth.
He has earned only $310,797 from tennis in 2023, having had to withdraw from most of this year’s tournaments due to long-standing injuries.
This month, he announced that surgery to fix a troublesome psoas muscle had been a success. With a recovery time of five months, Nadal, now 37, could begin the next chapter in his career before the Australian Open in January.
Before then, another business venture will boost his 2023 earnings.
Zel, the hotel brand he created with Melia Hotels International in December, will open its first hotel next month. The luxury Zel Mallorca hotel, located on a beach in Palmanova, will welcome guests from July 1.
Paris Hilton
Hotel heiress Paris Hilton has joined a $15 million investment round in automated savings app Checkmate.
The series A round was led by Google Ventures and included more than a dozen other investors and funds, including Hilton’s husband, Carter Reum, through his M13 Ventures company.
Mantis, the venture capital fund of electronic duo The Chainsmokers, and Trevor Neff of Ashton Kutcher’s Sound Ventures also joined the funding round, the company said in a recent blog post.
The US-based Checkmate automates shopping discounts for iPhone users via a Safari browser extension. The app uses online and email searches to improve mobile shopping at a time when e-commerce has become more personalised and regulators are strengthening customer privacy.
Since its launch last year, the app has hit number one in the Apple App Store, surpassing more than 380,000 users, including 55,000 daily active users.
This is its second funding round after a $5 million seed round in September.
Hilton, 42, has a net worth of $300 million. She is the great-granddaughter of Conrad Hilton, who founded the Hilton Hotel chain, but has reportedly received a fraction of the hotelier’s fortune.
Instead, she has turned a career as a model, actor, reality TV star, DJ and influencer into a revenue stream worth billions of dollars.
As of 2020, her 30 fragrances had generated more than $2.65 billion in gross revenue, according to Elle Canada magazine. Together with her other fashion and retail businesses, Paris Hilton-backed products have generated more than $4 billion in sales.
Through her company 11:11 Media, Hilton is also involved in a wide range of creative and technology ventures, including businesses in the digital, audio, film, television, licensing and metaverse space.
The Simple Life star has invested in at least 12 different companies, according to investor information platform Crunchbase.
The majority of these have been start-ups linked to the blockchain, web3 and metaverse environment, including video platform Shibuya and cryptocurrency payments company MoonPay.
Harry Kane
English Premier League star Harry Kane has invested in OxeFit, a robotics and artificial intelligence-based fitness technology start-up, the Texas-based company said.
The oversubscribed series A round was joined by several professional athletes, including golfers Dustin Johnson and Talor Gooch, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and Miami Dolphins cornerback Jalen Ramsey.
The round brought in $20 million, according to market intelligence platform CB Insights. The size of Kane’s investment was not made public.
The real-time data that OxeFit machines provide can help stop or reduce injuries, Kane says.
“What impressed me most about OxeFit is not only the science behind the physical products, but the combination of robotics and content working together to deliver a truly customised training experience,” he says.
Kane, 29, has a net worth of £51 million ($63.9 million) as of May 2023, up from £42 million a year previously, according to The Sunday Times.
His income largely stems from his contract with Tottenham Hotspur, where he earns about £200,000 each week, or £10.4 million annually, as a striker under a six-year deal running until 2025.
Endorsements provide further income, notably from Nike, Gatorade and EA Sports.
Kane also has an extensive property portfolio valued at more than £13 million, according to the UK’s The Sun newspaper, which cited accounts for his company, Edward James Investments.
Leonardo DiCaprio
Joining the world’s billionaires in the new space race is Leonardo DiCaprio. The Academy award-winning actor recently invested in Earth observation and geospatial start-up Nuview, the company said last week.
It is the actor’s first investment into a space economy company, according to investor information website Pitchbook.
Using a network of 20 light detection and ranging technology satellites, Nuview aims to generate centimetre-level accurate representations of the Earth, to provide greater data clarity in the fight against climate change.
“Nuview’s cutting-edge technology will set itself apart by generating high-resolution, 3D images of the Earth's surface, intending to improve our ability to monitor and protect the planet with much more accuracy,” DiCaprio says.
“This unprecedented data set will help enable scientists, policymakers and conservationists to make more informed decisions and uncover valuable new insights in climate science.”
Watch: Leonardo DiCaprio at Cop26
The new outlay is rooted in DiCaprio’s broader investment approach.
The long-time climate change advocate supports a wide range of sustainability-focused ventures. These include alternative meat start-ups Aleph Farms, Beyond Meat and Mosa Meat, solar energy players Powerhive and Kingo Energy, and packaging substitute CruzFoam.
Last year, a climate fund he backs, Regeneration.VC, raised $45 million to help make sustainable consumer goods available to wider audiences.
DiCaprio, 48, has a net worth of $300 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
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Blonde
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Racecard
2pm Handicap Dh 90,000 1,800m
2.30pm Handicap Dh120,000 1,950m
3pm Handicap Dh105,000 1,600m
3.30pm Jebel Ali Classic Conditions Dh300,000 1,400m
4pm Maiden Dh75,000 1,600m
4.30pm Conditions Dh250,000 1,400m
5pm Maiden Dh75,000 1,600m
5.30pm Handicap Dh85,000 1,000m
The National selections:
2pm Arch Gold
2.30pm Conclusion
3pm Al Battar
3.30pm Golden Jaguar
4pm Al Motayar
4.30pm Tapi Sioux
5pm Leadership
5.30pm Dahawi
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
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.”
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
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The biog
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Family: She is the youngest of seven siblings
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Hobbies: audiobooks and fitness: she works out every day, enjoying kickboxing and basketball
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