The newest hotel on Palm Jumeirah has opened its doors to guests.
Taj Exotica Resort & Spa, The Palm, Dubai, is located on the East Crescent of the city's man-made island.
The five-star resort has a private beach, an all-natural spa and a 70-metre swimming pool that the hotel says is the longest on the Palm.
Located between Rixos The Palm Hotel & Suites and Aloft Palm Jumeirah, it's the third hotel for the Taj brand in Dubai.
A skylight ceiling welcomes guests into the spacious lobby of the hotel, which has 325 rooms and suites. Rooms are contemporary and spacious, with a choice of oceanfront or city skyline views. The Taj Exotica suite is for those who want to splurge, coming with its own terrace overlooking the pool and a private Jacuzzi.
There are plenty of dining options, including Indian fine-dining at Varq, a gastropub experience at the Roaring Rabbit, Arabic fare at Raia and beachside dining at The Coast. On the rooftop, Palm Kitchen serves an international menu with sweeping views over the Arabian Gulf.
All-natural Jiva Spa will offer therapies inspired by Indian healing techniques with Ayurveda, yoga, mediation and more on the menu. Guests can also unwind on a 230-metres stretch of private beach.
Children will be well taken care of at Popsicle Kids Club, where they'll have their own shallow water pool and an outdoor playground. There are also tennis courts, ballrooms and meeting rooms for sports, social occasions and conferences.
The Taj Hotel group already operates Taj Jumeirah Lakes Towers Dubai and Taj Dubai, and is developing a fourth Taj hotel in the city.
Rates start at Dh1,275 per night, excluding taxes. Taj Exotica Resort and Spa, The Palm, Dubai, East Crescent, Palm Jumeirah; tajhotels.com
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Last-16 Europa League fixtures
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FC Copenhagen (0) v Istanbul Basaksehir (1) 8.55pm
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Inter Milan v Getafe (one leg only) 11pm
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Thursday
Bayer Leverkusen (3) v Rangers (1) 8.55pm
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FC Basel (3) v Eintracht Frankfurt (0) 11pm
Wolves (1) Olympiakos (1) 11pm
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3. Gareth Bale - to Real Madrid in 2013/14 - €101m
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - to Real Madrid in 2009/10 - €94m
5. Gonzalo Higuain - to Juventus in 2016/17 - €90m
6. Neymar - to Barcelona in 2013/14 - €88.2m
7. Romelu Lukaku - to Manchester United in 2017/18 - €84.7m
8. Luis Suarez - to Barcelona in 2014/15 - €81.72m
9. Angel di Maria - to Manchester United in 2014/15 - €75m
10. James Rodriguez - to Real Madrid in 2014/15 - €75m
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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.”
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