Fiercely loyal White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders, who became one of US President Donald Trump's closest advisers, will leave her job at the end of the month, Mr Trump said on Thursday.
Ms Sanders, 36, who has worked with Mr Trump since the early days of his run for office, is the latest in a long line of his senior advisers to leave.
She often compared the antics of the press corps to the behaviour of her three youngsters and said she wanted to spend more time with her children at their home in Arkansas.
“She’s a warrior,” said Mr Trump, who announced her departure on Twitter shortly before calling Ms Sanders on stage at an event at the White House.
“We’ve been through a lot together, and she’s tough, but she’s good.”
He did not immediately name a replacement.
Ms Sanders drew criticism for ending the long tradition of daily press briefings, as Mr Trump preferred to take questions himself and command the White House stage. He relegated his staff to appearances on television to defend his policies.
Ms Sanders’s last briefing was 94 days ago. Her relationship with the press became particularly strained a year ago after a comedian hired by the White House Correspondents’ Association for its annual dinner mocked her appearance and penchant for spinning the truth.
“She burns facts and then she uses that ash to create a perfect smokey eye,” comedian Michelle Wolf said, as Ms Sanders sat at the head table.
In the months afterward, she was asked to leave a restaurant in Lexington, Virginia, because of her association with the Trump administration.
Ms Sanders became a popular figure at Trump rallies and was sought after for selfies by his supporters.
In November, at his final rallies before the congressional elections, he invited her on stage to speak briefly to the cheering crowds.
Ms Sanders called the job “the honour of a lifetime".
“I’ve loved every minute, even the hard minutes,” she said, her voice trembling with emotion. “I have three amazing kids and I’m going to spend a little more time with them.”
Ms Sanders’ role developed into that of a senior adviser and confidante of the president, and she was regularly brought into senior-level meetings.
Speculation immediately turned to whether Ms Sanders might run for governor of Arkansas, a position once held by her father, Mike Huckabee. She grew up working on his political campaigns.
“If we can get her to run for the Governor of Arkansas, I think she’ll do very well,” Mr Trump said.
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This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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.”