A Saudi foreign ministry official said on Friday that Saudi Arabia and Iran were holding talks to reduce regional tensions but that it was too early to judge the outcome and Riyadh wanted to see "verifiable deeds".
The comments by Ambassador Rayed Krimly, head of policy planning at the ministry, were the first public confirmation from Riyadh that the rivals were holding direct talks.
"We hope they prove successful, but it is too early, and premature, to reach any definitive conclusions," Mr Krimly told Reuters.
Last month Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said the kingdom was open to improving relations with Iran.
"Iran is a neighbouring state. We are seeking to have good relations with Iran," Prince Mohammed said.
"We have interests in Iran, we aim to see a prosperous Iran," he said in a television interview.
"We are working with our partners in the region to overcome our differences with Iran, especially with its support for militias and the development of its nuclear programme."
Iran responded to the crown prince's remarks by saying the two countries “can adopt constructive dialogue and overcome differences”.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said Saudi Arabia and Iran are important countries in the Islamic world and “bilateral co-operation is important in ensuring security and stability in the region".
Government and diplomatic sources in Baghdad confirmed last month that Saudi and Iranian government officials held back-channel talks, below Cabinet level, in the Iraqi capital. Riyadh and Tehran denied that talks had taken place.
Iran, the US and Europe held a fourth round of high-level talks on Friday in Austria aimed at bringing the United States back into the nuclear deal with Iran, with both sides signalling a willingness to work out the major stumbling blocks.
President Donald Trump pulled the US out of the landmark 2015 deal in 2018. The deal had promised Iran economic incentives in exchange for curbs on its nuclear programme, and the Trump administration reimposed heavy sanctions on the Islamic republic in an unsuccessful attempt to bring Tehran into new talks.
The Biden administration, meanwhile, is working in the region to solve one of the biggest points of contention between Saudi Arabia and Iran, Yemen. Just this week an American delegation led by US special envoy Tim Lenderking and Senator Chris Murphy met UN envoy Martin Griffiths in Oman as part of a diplomatic push for a ceasefire in Yemen.
Riyadh also signalled that it will be seeking Tehran's support to wind down its costly six-year military engagement in neighbouring Yemen, where Houthi rebels launched a campaign to seize the last northern government stronghold of Marib, and stepped up missile and drones strikes on the kingdom.
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2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
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.”
