Latest: UAE residents tell of turmoil at being stranded abroad
Tributes have been paid to a Dubai father who died after contracting Covid-19.
Omar Rawashdeh, 48, was admitted to Rashid Hospital 10 days ago after testing positive for the virus.
His cousin, Izzadin Al Rawashdeh, said on Monday that he was told of his relative's death that morning.
He said many family members had been unaware that the Jordanian citizen, who worked as an executive director for telecoms firm Etisalat, had been unwell.
"We didn't know that he was at the hospital until Sunday night when he was moved to the ICU around 10pm," Mr Al Rawashdeh said.
"Today at 6.30am I was informed that he had passed away."
Al Rawashdeh, a father of boys aged 18 and 11, and a girl, 8, was understood to have died from complications resulting from Covid-19.
"It was very shocking to hear about his death as he was young and in good health," his cousin said.
"He moved to the country approximately 20 years ago and worked at Etisalat as a networks executive director.
"He was well known for his kindness, good manners and his efforts to help people in need. We will miss him and his big smile."
Adnan Al Awdat, a friend of Al Wawashdeh, spoke of his shock over the loss of a man who was always there for others.
"He was a good man and always there for his family and friends," said Mr Al Awdat.
"His death has shocked us all, and we pray to God to protect his family and all of us from this virus.
"Our deepest condolences go to his family and children.
"We appreciate the UAE government efforts in keeping everyone safe and providing treatment to our dear friend during this critical time.
"We are also very grateful to the UAE for arranging his funeral and burial in an honourable way."
A limited number of family members attended the burial ceremony on Monday in Al Quoz Cemetery.
Jordan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates confirmed Al Rawashdeh's death on Monday.
“The Jordanian consulate has been following on his condition, which lately deteriorated leading to his death,” ministry spokesman Daifallah Fayez said.
Condolences were paid by friends and relatives on social media.
"I was so saddened to hear Omar Rawashdeh's passed away," Michelle D'cruz said on Facebook.
"I pray your family will have strength during this time of loss. My sincerest condolences for an incredibly great loss. I'll never forget."
Another friend posted a tribute of Facebook offering his sincere condolences to the family
"We mourn with further grief and sorrow, our dear brother and friend, Omar Rawashdeh, who passed away in Dubai. Our sincere condolences to the family of our dear friend," said Khaled Abu Zaid.
A total of 484 new coronavirus cases were recorded in the UAE on Monday, pushing the country's total to 7,265.
A further 74 patients made full recoveries from Covid-19, taking the number to 1,360.
Another two people, both from unspecified Asian countries, died after contracting the virus, taking the toll to 43.
UAE tackles coronavirus outbreak - in pictures
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.”
TOUR RESULTS AND FIXTURES
June 3: NZ Provincial Barbarians 7 Lions 13
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June 13: Highlanders 23 Lions 22
June 17: Maori All Blacks 10 Lions 32
June 20: Chiefs 6 Lions 34
June 24: New Zealand 30 Lions 15 (First Test)
June 27: Hurricanes 31 Lions 31
July 1: New Zealand 21 Lions 24 (Second Test)
July 8: New Zealand v Lions (Third Test) - kick-off 11.30am (UAE)
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
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The drill
Recharge as needed, says Mat Dryden: “We try to make it a rule that every two to three months, even if it’s for four days, we get away, get some time together, recharge, refresh.” The couple take an hour a day to check into their businesses and that’s it.
Stick to the schedule, says Mike Addo: “We have an entire wall known as ‘The Lab,’ covered with colour-coded Post-it notes dedicated to our joint weekly planner, content board, marketing strategy, trends, ideas and upcoming meetings.”
Be a team, suggests Addo: “When training together, you have to trust in each other’s abilities. Otherwise working out together very quickly becomes one person training the other.”
Pull your weight, says Thuymi Do: “To do what we do, there definitely can be no lazy member of the team.”
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Dubai Bling season three
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Rating: 1/5
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
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GREATEST ROYAL RUMBLE CARD
The line-up as it stands for the Greatest Royal Rumble in Saudi Arabia on April 27
50-man Royal Rumble
Universal Championship
Brock Lesnar (champion) v Roman Reigns
Casket match
The Undertaker v Rusev
Intercontinental Championship
Seth Rollins (champion) v The Miz v Finn Balor v Samoa Joe
SmackDown Tag Team Championship
The Bludgeon Brothers v The Usos
Raw Tag Team Championship
Sheamus and Cesaro v Bray Wyatt and Matt Hardy
United States Championship
Jeff Hardy (champion) v Jinder Mahal
Singles match
Triple H v John Cena
To be confirmed
AJ Styles will defend his WWE World Heavyweight title and Cedric Alexander his Cruiserweight Championship, but matches have yet to be announced
