Arsene Wenger insisted he respected the decision of Arsenal supporters who stayed away from Thursday night's Europa League victory over BATE Borisov.
The Gunners, already assured of progressing as winners of group H, hammered the Belarusian champions 6-0 in front of a record-low Emirates Stadium Crowd.
While the official figure was 54,648 it is understood less than 30,000 fans were present to see Arsenal run riot with an emphatic victory.
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Mathieu Debuchy, Theo Walcott, Jack Wilshere and Mohamed Elneny all got on the score-sheet while Denis Polyakov scored an own goal and Olivier Giroud converted a penalty.
The likes of Borussia Dortmund, Napoli or Celtic are now waiting in Monday's draw for the round of 32 as Wenger - toasting his 700th win as Arsenal boss at the full-time whistle - defended the decision of the stay-away supporters.
"I think you forget about that once you are on the pitch," he said when asked about the low attendance.
"It's true that you prefer the ground to be full, but tonight there was not a lot at stake on the competitive side. No matter how many sit in the stands, you have to give them what they expect - and that's what we did.
"You respect the decision of your fans. They knew we were top of the group anyway and you could basically expect that.
"You have looked around last night in the Champions League in game number six, I have seen many grounds not full, or half empty. That is a bit the problem of the group stage."
Wenger was pleased with the display from his side as he delivered a landmark victory in style.
"I believe that it was done in a stylish way and in a technically high-quality game from our side," he said of the win.
"You can say the opponent was not at the level of the Premier League and I would agree with you but you can only do your job and that's what we did, in a convincing way with remarkable spirit and finished well the job in this group stage."
BATE coach Aleksandr Yermakovich admitted his side were not ready for the Arsenal onslaught as their season ended in heavy defeat.
"It was a totally different level for the team and it was very difficult for us," he said.
"We were not prepared for this match, we were trying to play for our fans and play attacking football, sadly it didn't happen."
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Crops that could be introduced to the UAE
1: Quinoa
2. Bathua
3. Amaranth
4. Pearl and finger millet
5. Sorghum
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.”
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Tottenham 0-1 Ajax, Tuesday
Second leg
Ajax v Tottenham, Wednesday, May 8, 11pm
Game is on BeIN Sports
The President's Cake
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Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
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