The roads around Downtown Dubai are now closed in anticipation of tonight's New Year’s Eve celebrations.
Al Asayel Street, towards the area around Burj Khalifa, is closed, as is Mohammed bin Rashid Boulevard, Burj Khalifa St and Financial Centre Street lower deck.
On Thursday, Dubai announced guidelines for New Year’s Eve celebrations in the emirate.
Firework displays will be held in 29 places in the emirate to discourage mass gatherings and encourage spectators to practise social distancing, Dubai Media Office said on Twitter.
Thirty-six shows of spectacular pyrotechnics will light up the skies above several landmark sites in the emirate, with shows planned at Burj Khalifa, Expo 2020 Dubai and Atlantis The Palm.
Burj Khalifa will stage the Eve of Wonders at the stroke of midnight on Friday. Visitors can expect impressive fireworks and light shows, as well as a new laser feature that will make its debut at The Dubai Fountain in sync with Burj Khalifa's programme.
There will be be two firework displays at Expo 2020 Dubai – one at midnight and another at 3am on Saturday.
Expo visitors can also expect 13 hours of non-stop festivities, beginning at 3pm. There will be entertainment from world-famous DJs, a midnight “ball drop” at Al Wasl Plaza and celebrations at some of the 192 country pavilions to celebrate the occasion.
Masks must be worn at all times when celebrating New Year’s Eve in public. The penalty for not wearing one when required to do so is Dh3,000 ($816).
Residents are reminded to follow all precautionary measures set out by the emirate to halt the spread of Covid-19.
The directive came from Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai.
Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed, Chairman of Dubai’s Supreme Committee of Crisis and Disaster Management, said strong preventive measures had helped to keep people safe.
“Dubai has continuously monitored local and global developments to take the decisive action necessary to protect the community and implement precautionary measures outlined by local and international health authorities,” he said in a statement.
“Every member of the community should stringently observe the preventive guidelines in place, including wearing face masks and observing social distancing, to protect their families and others.”
Dubai Ambulance crews are also on standby to handle any emergencies. At least 219 emergency vehicles, 873 paramedics, 60 volunteers and 35 supervisors will cover the dozens of events taking place across the emirate, Dubai Ambulance said.
Expo 2020 Dubai, for example, will be secured by nine emergency vehicles, an ambulance bus, a field support unit and eight first responder vehicles.
Six ambulances and 16 paramedics will be at Dubai Mall, while around Burj Khalifa, authorities will station 15 emergency vehicles.
Palm Jumeirah, Global Village and Burj Al Arab are among the other locations where emergency services will be stationed.
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● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
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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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Started: January 2018
Founder(s): Pishu Ganglani and Ricky Husaini
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech, micro finance
Initial investment: $1 million
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
