This is the last in a daily series that explores how expats from around the world feel ahead of the US presidential election on November 8. We have spoken to people from Latin America, South Asia, Africa, Russia and East Asia and the MENA region.
ABU DHABI // American expatriates voiced their preference for Democrat Hillary Clinton over Republican Donald Trump as one of the most acrimonious US presidential election campaigns in living memory enters its final 24 hours.
Tom Mason, a 30-year-old interior designer, said he supported Mrs Clinton because he regarded Mr Trump as a danger to his country.
“The way he speaks [about] extremism will lead to more violence in a country where that’s already a problem,” he said. “I’m a liberal, my preference was Bernie Sanders, but Hillary has a lot of bad press around her and she doesn’t deal with the press very well.”
He believed that Mrs Clinton would continue president Barack Obama’s legacy and liberal policies.
“I don’t believe Trump ever wanted to be president. I think it was all publicity stunt that got out of hand and I don’t think he understands the full scope of the job,” Mr Mason said.
He said he believed Mr Trump did not have the temperament for leadership.
“Governing is all about compromise, and someone like Trump doesn’t compromise,” Mr Mason said. “That doesn’t even go into the racist, sexist and disgustingness spat out by him.
“I think it goes without saying that it’s something that the world can do without him and he makes me feel ashamed for Americans everywhere.”
Rami Brown, 28, has voted for Mrs Clinton because he cannot imagine himself voting for Mr Trump.
“This is an election based on feelings. Policies have been put aside, and more Americans are going to vote with their gut than ever before,” he said.
For an American living abroad, neither candidate had addressed policies that were relevant to him.
“Clinton has briefly mentioned that she would work with the Democrats Abroad towards the goal of simplifying foreign tax filings and addressing certain problems with Fatca (the US foreign account tax compliance act) that has created restrictions on US citizens foreign bank accounts,” Mr Brown said.
Frank B, 45, a lawyer based in Dubai, said: “Clinton is the most qualified but more importantly, Trump is grossly unqualified.
“His policies – to the extent that he’s ever enunciated any of them – are incoherent, reckless and illogical. They are a threat to the economic, political and security standing of the US in respect of its relations with the rest of the world, and his personal character and demeanour are undignified and not suitable for the office which he seeks.”
Although usually a Republican voter, Mr B called Mr Trump an “embarrassment” to the Republican party and America.
He compared Mr Trump to media mogul and four-time prime minister Italian Silvio Berlusconi, Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe’s outspoken head of state since 1987, and Kim Jong-un – the North Korean whose four-and-a-half years of leadership are viewed dimly by the US.
“They are laughing stocks both within their countries and in the world and that’s the position that he (Mr Trump) would hold,” Mr B said.
“With respect to race, Trump will make people think that the deplorable things he says instinctively will be acceptable in common society.”
Ayah Rashid, 19, a Muslim-American student NYU Abu Dhabi, believed Mrs Clinton would do more for minorities in the US.
“When you’re talking about race and gender, it’s a huge part of the campaign, both parties are trying to get minorities on their side, but Trump’s campaign has been riddled with so many racist and sexist tones that I don’t think it helps people’s confidence in him,” she said.
“The president is supposed to be for the people, they are supposed to have the people’s best interest in mind, but when you have minorities that are insulted there becomes an alienation that could happen if Trump becomes president,” she said. “We want a president who can champion minorities and women.”
cmalek@thenational.ae
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The biog
Nickname: Mama Nadia to children, staff and parents
Education: Bachelors degree in English Literature with Social work from UAE University
As a child: Kept sweets on the window sill for workers, set aside money to pay for education of needy families
Holidays: Spends most of her days off at Senses often with her family who describe the centre as part of their life too
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.”
Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
