Britain’s Prince William and his wife, Kate, visited a group of Ukrainians in London on Wednesday to show their support for and express solidarity with the diaspora while war wages in their homeland.
The couple met people at the Ukrainian Cultural Centre in Holland Park hours after the UK government announced it was stepping up its aid to the former Soviet nation.
The Duchess of Cambridge wore a badge in the blue and yellow colours of the Ukraine flag, with a white heart on it.
She also wore knitted jumper similar to the blue of the Ukrainian flag. William wore the same badge.
Kate also took along trays of brownies she had baked and granola bars to give to volunteers at the centre.
They offered assistance from their charitable foundation for children and young people suffering mental health problems and trauma from the war.
The couple said their eldest children, Prince George, 8, and Princess Charlotte, 6, had been affected by the unfolding tragedy.
"Ours have been coming home asking all about it," William said. "They are obviously talking about it with their friends at school."
He said he found it difficult discussing some of it with his children, and that he had to "choose my words carefully to explain what is going on".
The pair met members of the Ukrainian community and volunteers, and spoke with Saleh Saeed, chief executive of the Disasters Emergency Committee, about the DEC’s humanitarian appeal.
They heard about the services offered at the social club and were shown boxes of donations collected to help those in need.
The couple have been outspoken in their support for Ukraine since Russia invaded on February 24.
Within days of Russian President Vladimir Putin launching his attack, the couple released a message expressing their solidarity with Ukrainians and support for the country’s leader.
In a personal tweet from the couple, Prince William and his wife recalled their meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his wife, Olena Zelenska, during their visit to Buckingham Palace.
“In October 2020, we had the privilege to meet President Zelenskyy and the first lady to learn of their hope and optimism for Ukraine's future,” the couple wrote.
“Today, we stand with the president and all of Ukraine's people as they bravely fight for that future.”
Mr Zelenskyy thanked the royal couple for voicing their support.
Prince William and Kate visited hours after Britain’s Defence Secretary, Ben Wallace, announced the UK was increasing its funding for Ukraine to £220 million ($290m), which includes £120m of humanitarian aid.
Mr Wallace said officials were also considering sending more sophisticated weapons to help Ukrainians defend their land against Russian aggression.
Earlier on Wednesday, Vadym Prystaiko, the Ukrainian ambassador to the UK, said the embassy in London had been contacted by countless British citizens wanting to travel to Ukraine to help.
Mr Prystaiko recommended that people refrain from heading to the war zone as it may put extra strain on Ukrainian armed forces to offer them protection.
But he said that well-intentioned people could not be stopped from going if they were determined to help.
“We are not encouraging people to go but at the same time I can’t stop most of them to go there,” Mr Prystaiko told the House of Commons home affairs committee.
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The full list of 2020 Brit Award nominees (winners in bold):
British group
Coldplay
Foals
Bring me the Horizon
D-Block Europe
Bastille
British Female
Mabel
Freya Ridings
FKA Twigs
Charli xcx
Mahalia
British male
Harry Styles
Lewis Capaldi
Dave
Michael Kiwanuka
Stormzy
Best new artist
Aitch
Lewis Capaldi
Dave
Mabel
Sam Fender
Best song
Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber - I Don’t Care
Mabel - Don’t Call Me Up
Calvin Harrison and Rag’n’Bone Man - Giant
Dave - Location
Mark Ronson feat. Miley Cyrus - Nothing Breaks Like A Heart
AJ Tracey - Ladbroke Grove
Lewis Capaldi - Someone you Loved
Tom Walker - Just You and I
Sam Smith and Normani - Dancing with a Stranger
Stormzy - Vossi Bop
International female
Ariana Grande
Billie Eilish
Camila Cabello
Lana Del Rey
Lizzo
International male
Bruce Springsteen
Burna Boy
Tyler, The Creator
Dermot Kennedy
Post Malone
Best album
Stormzy - Heavy is the Head
Michael Kiwanuka - Kiwanuka
Lewis Capaldi - Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent
Dave - Psychodrama
Harry Styles - Fine Line
Rising star
Celeste
Joy Crookes
beabadoobee
The President's Cake
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The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
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Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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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.”
