Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, met General David Hurley, governor general of Australia, at Expo 2020 Dubai on Friday.
The meeting focused on bilateral relations and discussed opportunities to further enhance them in various fields, including tourism, commerce and science.
Sheikh Mohammed and Gen Hurley also talked about regional and international issues of common concern.
Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, and Minister of Finance, also attended the meeting.
Sheikh Mohammed praised Australia's participation in Expo 2020 Dubai and for presenting innovative ideas to shape the future.
The Ruler of Dubai said he hopes the bilateral relations between the two countries will grow further.
Gen Hurley said he was pleased to visit the UAE and meet Sheikh Mohammed.
He said his country was keen to further co-operate and push bilateral relations in various fields, such as science, green technologies, and tourism.
Gen Hurley said the Expo 2020 showed that Dubai was capable of hosting a major global event, which offered an opportunity to people to meet, learn about different cultures, and provide innovative solutions to overcome global challenges, including the pandemic and climate change.
The meeting was attended by Saqr Ghobash, Speaker of the Federal National Council, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Supreme Chairman of the Emirates Airline Group, Sheikh Mansour bin Mohammed, a number of ministers, directors of local departments, and dignitaries.
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- Grade 4 = grade C
- Grade 3 = between grades D and E
- Grade 2 = between grades E and F
- Grade 1 = between grades F and G
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Stage three:
1. Stefan Bissegger (SUI) EF Education-EasyPost, in 9-43
2. Filippo Ganna (ITA) Ineos Grenadiers, at 7s
3. Tom Dumoulin (NED) Jumbo-Visma, at 14s
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2. Filippo Ganna (ITA) Ineos Grenadiers, at 7s
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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.”
