As the UAE starts its Year of Tolerance, there is a renewed drive to attract individual high net worth investors with a whole new series of five-to-10 year residency visas for those looking to invest or retire here.
In an era when intolerance rules globally, with Donald Trump, Brexit and undocumented migration, an influx of HNW investors could not come at a better time for the Emirates, whose economy has suffered from lower oil prices in recent years.
It’s a growing trend. According to New Worth Wealth, some 5,000 new HNWs became resident in the UAE in 2017, more than moved to traditional safe havens like Switzerland and Singapore. About the same number of HNWs left the UK. The 2018 figures will likely be higher.
Last weekend Britain's richest man, Gopichand Hinduja, told a UK newspaper that many of the country’s wealthiest people have already "quietly left Britain for Dubai, Singapore and other financial centres".
Could this account for a surge in Dubai property deals at the end of last year? Or the 2.5 per cent jump in the Dubai Financial Market on the last day of 2018? Maybe. But there are reasons why many more new HNW residents will come.
The Muslim minority in the UK is increasingly worried about a backlash that could follow a disorderly no-deal Brexit when the UK leaves the EU in March, although most experts say a no Brexit scenario is positive for the economy.
That fear could be overdone. The elected Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is Muslim. Home Secretary Sajid Javid is also of Pakistani heritage. UK law is anti-racist and pro-integration.
You could say the same about the US, which is home to 3.5 million Muslims. Yet Donald Trump’s travel ban on certain nationalities is thinly veiled religious discrimination, and his rhetoric is unfriendly to say the least.
In the European Union undocumented mass migration is a huge political issue after the entry of more than a million mainly Muslim refugees and their fellow travellers from the Middle East and Africa over the past few years.
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The UAE welcomes HNW investors of all religions and business backgrounds as residents. Indeed, Dubai first doubled in size at the start of the twentieth century when merchants from Iran fled surging taxation for its free-trade opportunities.
Yet the UAE did not figure in a new list forecasting the top 10 countries for HNW growth in the next five years compiled by Wealth-X researchers using a database of 540,000 HNW individuals.
Nigeria, Egypt, Bangladesh, Vietnam and Poland respectively got the highest scores, followed by China, Kenya, India, the Philippines and Ukraine. But this was a survey of relative growth. The UAE comes near the top for actual new HNW numbers in other surveys. Why?
Well, the UAE ranks as one of the safest nations in the world, with very low crime rates. It’s child-friendly, although its high-standard schools are expensive.
True, the cost of living has been rising sharply. But owning a car is cheap, domestic help affordable, swimming pools and beaches clean, apartments are spacious and the sunshine is free. It’s also genuinely multi-cultural.
Residency is linked to employment and now personal wealth, so there is no unemployment nor real poverty. Millionaires and taxi drivers are both welcome.
Dubai is one of the most modern cities in the world, with excellent roads, a growing metro and tram system. It is also a world-class luxury travel destination. There’s an indoor ski slope, opera house, shopping malls, concerts, cinemas, and first-rate hospitals. The winter weather is excellent.
Dubai residency visas are also super flexible. You only have to actually be resident for a day or two every six months to keep it. But most residents who own property choose to stay much longer than that.
Sure eating out can be very pricey, and while electronics are cheap, clothing is surprisingly costly.
However, luxury homes cost less than half London prices for the best locations. It’s also a tax haven with no income, no capital gains, nor inheritance taxes. VAT is only five per cent. Accommodation is often to a high specification, and the new developments under construction mean there is a huge variety of choice for new residents.
If the inflow of new HNWs becomes a rush, rather than just a growing phenomenon, UAE house prices could rocket due to undersupply, something current residents would probably consider unthinkable after five years of falling prices.
Safety, tolerance and a luxury lifestyle. The UAE has all that is required to become the Monaco or Singapore of the Middle East, and continues to upgrade its residency rules to attract HNWs fleeing intolerance and high-tax countries for a better life.
Investing now in a tolerant nation could pay high dividends. Local equity and home prices are at a cyclical low.
Peter Cooper has been writing about finance in the Gulf for two decades
The 24-man squad:
Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool), Koen Casteels (VfL Wolfsburg).
Defenders: Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham), Thomas Meunier (Paris Saint-Germain), Thomas Vermaelen (Barcelona), Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham), Dedryck Boyata (Celtic), Vincent Kompany (Manchester City).
Midfielders: Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United), Axel Witsel (Tianjin Quanjian), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Eden Hazard (Chelsea), Nacer Chadli (West Bromwich Albion), Leander Dendoncker (Anderlecht), Thorgan Hazard (Borussia Moenchengladbach), Youri Tielemans (Monaco), Mousa Dembele (Tottenham Hotspur).
Forwards: Michy Batshuayi (Chelsea/Dortmund), Yannick Carrasco (Dalian Yifang), Adnan Januzaj (Real Sociedad), Romelu Lukaku (Manchester United), Dries Mertens (Napoli).
Standby player: Laurent Ciman (Los Angeles FC).
The specs
Engine: Single front-axle electric motor
Power: 218hp
Torque: 330Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 402km (claimed)
Price: From Dh215,000 (estimate)
On sale: September
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates, Etihad and Swiss fly direct from the UAE to Zurich from Dh2,855 return, including taxes.
The chalet
Chalet N is currently open in winter only, between now and April 21. During the ski season, starting on December 11, a week’s rental costs from €210,000 (Dh898,431) per week for the whole property, which has 22 beds in total, across six suites, three double rooms and a children’s suite. The price includes all scheduled meals, a week’s ski pass, Wi-Fi, parking, transfers between Munich, Innsbruck or Zurich airports and one 50-minute massage per person. Private ski lessons cost from €360 (Dh1,541) per day. Halal food is available on request.
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 190hp at 5,600rpm
Torque: 320Nm at 1,500-4,000rpm
Transmission: 7-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel consumption: 10.9L/100km
Price: From Dh119,900
On sale: Now
Company Profile
Name: HyveGeo
Started: 2023
Founders: Abdulaziz bin Redha, Dr Samsurin Welch, Eva Morales and Dr Harjit Singh
Based: Cambridge and Dubai
Number of employees: 8
Industry: Sustainability & Environment
Funding: $200,000 plus undisclosed grant
Investors: Venture capital and government
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
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Company profile
Company name: Fasset
Started: 2019
Founders: Mohammad Raafi Hossain, Daniel Ahmed
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $2.45 million
Current number of staff: 86
Investment stage: Pre-series B
Investors: Investcorp, Liberty City Ventures, Fatima Gobi Ventures, Primal Capital, Wealthwell Ventures, FHS Capital, VN2 Capital, local family offices
LA LIGA FIXTURES
Thursday (All UAE kick-off times)
Sevilla v Real Betis (midnight)
Friday
Granada v Real Betis (9.30pm)
Valencia v Levante (midnight)
Saturday
Espanyol v Alaves (4pm)
Celta Vigo v Villarreal (7pm)
Leganes v Real Valladolid (9.30pm)
Mallorca v Barcelona (midnight)
Sunday
Atletic Bilbao v Atletico Madrid (4pm)
Real Madrid v Eibar (9.30pm)
Real Sociedad v Osasuna (midnight)
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now
Company Profile
Name: Direct Debit System
Started: Sept 2017
Based: UAE with a subsidiary in the UK
Industry: FinTech
Funding: Undisclosed
Investors: Elaine Jones
Number of employees: 8
360Vuz PROFILE
Date started: January 2017
Founder: Khaled Zaatarah
Based: Dubai and Los Angeles
Sector: Technology
Size: 21 employees
Funding: $7 million
Investors: Shorooq Partners, KBW Ventures, Vision Ventures, Hala Ventures, 500Startups, Plug and Play, Magnus Olsson, Samih Toukan, Jonathan Labin
SPEC SHEET: SAMSUNG GALAXY Z FOLD 4
Main display: 7.6" QXGA+ Dynamic Amoled 2X, 2176 x 1812, 21.6:18, 374ppi, HDR10+, up to 120Hz
Cover display: 6.2" HD+ Dynamic Amoled 2X, 2316 x 904, 23.1:9, 402ppi, up to 120Hz
Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1, 4nm, octa-core; Adreno 730 GPU
Memory: 12GB
Capacity: 256/512GB / 1TB
Platform: Android 12, One UI 4.1.1
Main camera: Triple 12MP ultra-wide (f/2.2) + 50MP wide (f/1.8) + 10MP telephoto (f/2.4), dual OIS, 3x optical zoom, 30x Space Zoom, portrait, super slo-mo
Video: 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, full-HD@30/60fps, HD@30fps; slo-mo@60/240/960fps; HDR10+
Cover camera: 10MP (f/2.2)
Inner front camera: Under-display 4MP (f/1.8)
Battery: 4400mAh, 25W fast charging, 15W wireless charging, reverse wireless charging, 'all-day' life
Connectivity: 5G; Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC (Samsung Pay)
I/O: USB-C
Cards: Nano-SIM + eSIM; 2 nano-SIMs + eSIM; 2 nano-SIMs
Colours: Graygreen, phantom black, beige, burgundy (online exclusive)
In the box: Fold 4, USB-C-to-USB-C cable
Price: Dh6,799 / Dh7,249 / Dh8,149
MATCH INFO
AC Milan v Inter, Sunday, 6pm (UAE), match live on BeIN Sports
BIRD BOX BARCELONA
Directors: David and Alex Pastor
Stars: Georgina Campbell, Mario Casas, Diego Calva
Rating: 2/5
TO CATCH A KILLER
Director: Damian Szifron
Stars: Shailene Woodley, Ben Mendelsohn, Ralph Ineson
Rating: 2/5
Andor
Creator: Tony Gilroy
Stars: Diego Luna, Genevieve O'Reilly, Alex Ferns
Rating: 5/5
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
England squad
Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Dominic Bess, James Bracey, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Sam Curran, Joe Denly, Ben Foakes, Lewis Gregory, Keaton Jennings, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Saqib Mahmood, Craig Overton, Jamie Overton, Matthew Parkinson, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Dom Sibley, Ben Stokes, Olly Stone, Amar Virdi, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood
Company Profile
Company name: Hoopla
Date started: March 2023
Founder: Jacqueline Perrottet
Based: Dubai
Number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Investment required: $500,000
Company Profile
Company name: Namara
Started: June 2022
Founder: Mohammed Alnamara
Based: Dubai
Sector: Microfinance
Current number of staff: 16
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Family offices
Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Power: 470hp, 338kW
Torque: 620Nm
Price: From Dh491,500 (estimate)
On sale: now
'The Batman'
Stars:Robert Pattinson
Director:Matt Reeves
Rating: 5/5