MIDDLE EAST INVESTMENT SUMMIT 2014

Transforming the Middle East, a mainstream destination for international investment

olitical and economic trends are transforming reforms in Morocco may clear the way for strong A man sand skis in the Middle East into a mainstream destina- growth in the next few years. As soon as this year, a the desert near Tabuk, Ption for international investors. In the Gulf, diplomatic agreement on ’s disputed nuclear pro- 1,500 km (932 miles) the stock markets of the and gram could allow the country of 80 million people to from Riyadh December Qatar attracted billions of dollars of fresh foreign begin rejoining the global trading system. 27, 2012. REUTERS/ money this year as they were upgraded to emerging These issues and others were discussed at the an- MOHAMED ALHWAITY market status by equity index compilers, while Saudi nual Reuters Middle East Investment Summit, where Arabia announced it would open its $550 billion Reuters journalists interviewed some of the region’s bourse to direct foreign investment early next year. top policy-makers and executives in cities including Returning political and financial stability in Egypt, Abu Dhabi, Cairo, Doha, Dubai, Rabat and Riyadh, after the turmoil of the Arab Spring, and economic producing exclusive stories and investable insights.

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As oil price slides, Gulf’s private business may benefit

BY ANDREW TORCHIA DUBAI, OCTOBER 26, 2014

uwait’s privately owned Jazeera Airways is preparing to bid for a Kbig stake in state-run flag carrier Kuwait Airways, Jazeera’s chairman told Reuters. If the deal goes through, it will be a sign that the business scene is changing in the Gulf. For several decades, Gulf Arab econo- mies have been dominated by the heavy hand of the state. Governments’ huge oil revenues have eclipsed private sector activ- ity. Benefiting from these revenues, state- owned firms have prospered while many private companies have struggled to raise financing and become ensnared in official red tape. But pressures are growing for a new The first oil well of the region (L), which was discovered in 1931, is seen with new and advanced oil model. North Africa’s Arab Spring upris- pumping machines in the background in Sakir, south of Manama, October 11, 2014. ings of 2011, fuelled by high unemploy- REUTERS/HAMAD I MOHAMMED ment, underlined to Gulf governments the need to create jobs for their citizens - and to enlist the private sector in that effort. Sultan noted that the region had a his- Summit that his company was preparing Meanwhile this year’s plunge of global tory of entrepreneurship - before the dis- to enter a bidding process for a 35 percent oil prices, to below levels which some gov- covery of oil, economies were supported strategic stake in loss-making Kuwait Air- ernments need to balance their budgets, has by small, flexible trading and transport ways. Parliament originally approved the exposed the risks of relying entirely on oil businesses, many using the wooden sailing airline’s privatisation in 2008 but the proj- for growth and revenues in the long term. ships known as dhows. ect was delayed; it now appears to be mov- The result is a string of economic re- “People have to think, how can we do ing ahead again. forms and steps to open up financial mar- without” the oil revenues that have sus- “We believe in privatisation and think kets that may create more opportunities for tained the region for the last few decades, governments should focus on political private firms - foreign as well as domestic he said. administration, and not on managing air- - in coming years, company executives from line companies or transportation or other REFORMS around the Gulf told the Reuters Middle firms,” Boodai said. East Investment Summit. Jazeera Airways may be a step towards that Executives at the Summit also cited a The oil price slide is not causing panic in change. Set up in April 2004, it is one of a range of other efforts to stimulate private the Gulf but it is “getting people to think in handful of privately owned airlines in the business across the Gulf, including partial the right direction”, said Tarek Sultan, chief Gulf and now operates a fleet of 15 Airbus deregulation of areas such as telecommuni- executive of Kuwait-listed logistics giant A320s. cations and aviation in Saudi Arabia, and a Agility , which is majority privately owned. Chairman Marwan Boodai told the drive by the United Arab Emirates to make

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it easier for smaller companies to borrow The company launched an industrial public offers of shares in state-linked com- money from banks. zone at the port in 2010, offering tax and panies, billing the sales as a way to share These steps will not by themselves re- other incentives to attract private compa- the country’s corporate wealth with their duce governments’ economic dominance in nies’ logistics and manufacturing opera- citizens. the region, but there are signs that they are tions. Kuwait’s sovereign wealth fund an- boosting private sector activity enough to Current operations include auto parts nounced last week that it would resume at least partially offset a slowdown in the storage and distribution, and a chrome selling stakes in local companies to the region’s oil industries. smelter; British-based Tri-Star Resources public, planning to offer its majority stake For example, Saudi Arabia’s economic plans to build a $60 million plant supplying in Kuwait Investment Co in the first half growth in the second quarter of 2014 fell about 12 percent of current global produc- of 2015. to an annual 3.8 percent, the lowest rate in tion of antimony, Edwin Lammers, Sohar’s Saudi Arabia’s state-owned National a year, because of a slowing oil sector. But executive commercial manager, told the Commercial Bank IPO-NACO.SE is in growth in the non-oil private sector accel- Summit. the process of conducting a $6 billion IPO, erated, to 4.7 percent. the largest ever launched in the Arab world. MARKETS One of the biggest shifts in the Saudi “The reopening of the IPO market in economy for years is due to labour reforms, In the long run, the most far-reaching the region will attract more interest to our which are using quotas and fees to push boost to private sectors in the Gulf may markets and encourage other companies to hundreds of thousands of foreign workers come from the expansion of stock markets go public,” said Katerji. “This will help pri- out of the country and replace them with and efforts to draw more foreign investors vate equity and M&A activity in our mar- Saudi citizens. into them. kets as IPOs.” The reforms have been criticised for rais- Governments want foreign participa- Yasir al-Rumayyan, chief executive of ing companies’ costs, disrupting industries tion in local markets not because they need the investment banking arm of Banque such as construction, and putting unquali- the money, but because they think activist Saudi Fransi, Saudi Arabia’s fourth-largest fied, unproductive employees into some foreign funds will help to impose market listed lender, said Saudi companies were posts. Some firms have been hiring Saudis discipline on listed companies and promote becoming more interested in listing with for the sole purpose of meeting quotas. international management practices. the encouragement of regulators. But the reforms are clearly having some In May, the UAE and Qatari stock mar- “We have an excellent deals pipeline... success in pulling Saudis into the private kets won upgrades to emerging market We think we will see one IPO every quar- sector. The number of local citizens work- status in the classification of international ter from Saudi Fransi Capital for the com- ing at private firms jumped to 1.5 million index compiler MSCI. In July, Saudi Ara- ing five quarters,” he told the Summit. by the end of 2013 from 681,481 in 2009, bia announced it would open its bourse to according to labour ministry data. direct foreign investment in early 2015. Additional reporting by Ahmed Hagagy in Muhammad al-Agil, chairman of Sau- “The upgrade to emerging market status Kuwait, Azza Al Arabi in Dubai, Amena Bakr in di retailer Jarir Marketing, said this trend has been an important marker,” said Hai- Doha and Marwa Rashad in Riyadh; Editing was lifting Saudis’ disposable incomes and them Katerji, chief investment officer at Al by Olzhas Auyezov spending. Partly as a result, Jarir plans to Rayan Investment, a subsidiary of Masraf invest 1.1 billion riyals ($293 million) over Al Rayan, Qatar’s largest Islamic bank by five years to roughly double the number of market value. its stores in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf. “The expected opening of Saudi Arabia “We are not employing Saudis only be- will be even more significant given the size cause of the rules but because we think it is of the Saudi economy and stock market. In good for business,” Agil told the Summit. the coming years the region is likely to be- is taking a different tack in trying come a more mainstream investment desti- to diversify its economy beyond oil. It wants nation for global investors.” to develop its Sohar Port and Freezone, on After several years of inactivity in the its coast about 200 kilometres (125 miles) wake of the global financial crisis, most of to the southeast of Dubai, into a gateway the governments of the six-nation Gulf for imports to the Gulf. Cooperation Council are now promoting

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Egypt vows economic reforms, but what about politics?

BY LIN NOUEIHED CAIRO, OCTOBER 27, 2014

rom mega-projects to tax reforms, Egyptian ministers presented de- Ftailed initiatives last week to revive an economy battered by three years of up- heaval and decades of neglect. Quizzed about Egypt’s political challenges, however, they had less to say. With cameras rolling, eight Egyptian ministers opened their doors to journal- ists for the Reuters Middle East Invest- ment Summit last week; that accessibility was itself a change from past decades when contact was limited and officials were aloof. Previous administrations made big prom- ises on the economy but rarely delivered, critics say. Discontent with their apparent Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi waits for a meeting with U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew at the detachment helped trigger a revolt in 2011 presidential palace in Cairo, October 27, 2014. REUTERS/HASSAN AMMAR that toppled officer-turned-president Hosni Mubarak after 30 years in power. Marking themselves out from prede- need people to know their boundaries... Sisi, who won a presidential election cessors, the ministers spoke with candour There is a big difference between freedom in May, has already cracked down on the about the enormity of the challenges fac- and terrorism.” Brotherhood. Thousands of its members ing Egypt and in detail about solutions. The stakes are high in Egypt, where mil- have been detained, many sentenced to They have already implemented subsidy itants have stepped up attacks on police and death in mass trials that have drawn criti- cuts and tax reforms that previous govern- soldiers in the Sinai Peninsula since former cism from Western governments and rights ments shied away from for fear of fuelling army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ousted groups. discontent. elected president Mohamed Mursi of the Despite the recent turbulence, multi- Those moves helped persuade Moody’s Muslim Brotherhood more than a year ago. nationals have largely remained in Egypt, to change Egypt’s outlook from negative A day after Finance Minister Hany which continues to offer relative calm in a to stable this month, but beyond vows to Kadry Dimian told Reuters about his plans region consumed by conflict in Libya, Iraq, hold long-awaited parliamentary polls and for tax reforms and debt reduction, at least Syria and elsewhere. restore stability, talk of political reforms was 33 security personnel were killed in some of Many Egyptians have tolerated what general at best. the worst anti-state violence since Mursi’s critics describe as widespread human Asked how Egypt could hope to lure removal. rights abuses, hoping that Sisi would sta- back investors without implementing po- Egypt moved swiftly to declare a tem- bilise Egypt after the turmoil that followed litical reforms, Telecoms Minister Atef porary state of emergency in northern Sinai Mubarak’s fall. But how long their patience Helmy said: “Trust us as Egyptians; we re- and extended military trials to civilians who will last is an open question. ally look for peace. We look for stability. We attack state facilities or block roads, raising “While investor confidence has im- look for the welfare of our citizens... but we fears of a return to authoritarianism. proved thanks to the relative stability

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brought about by the Sisi presidency, on- going political polarisation, insecurity and structural economic challenges complicate investor decision-making,” political risk analysts Maplecorfit said in a recent report on Egypt. Asked about a new draft law regulating non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that human rights groups fear will restrict their activities and funding, Social Solidar- ity Minister Ghada Wali gave no details on its contents. She promised the draft would be cir- culated before going to parliament but in the meantime has insisted groups register Egypt’s Minister of Social Solidarity Ghada Wali talks during an interview with Reuters at her office in under an unpopular Mubarak-era law, rais- Cairo October 20, 2014. REUTERS/MOHAMED ABD EL GHANY ing fears that those working on advocacy or human rights would face persecution. Parliamentary elections are the final step “This is not a cosmetic operation or making do this,” said Helmy. in the roadmap set out by Sisi after Mursi’s something just look beautiful. We are fixing The military, whose budget is shielded ouster, but without a date set they could from the roots.” from public scrutiny, has a business empire miss the plan’s self-imposed deadline. They But even among major infrastructure ranging from automobiles to computers. were due to take place within six months of projects, some of which are set to be show- Estimates of the size of its profit-making the presidential vote in May. cased to investors at an economic summit operations range from a few percent up to During a visit to Cairo on Monday, U.S. in February, the changes are not as deep- nearly half of the economy. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew welcomed rooted as they appear. Some see the army as more efficient what he described as Egypt’s “strong initial Egypt’s military, which has long played than the government, and ministers point steps” toward economic reform but urged a key role in the economy, is taking a lead- out that it sub-contracts much of its work more political openness. ing role in a multi-billion dollar project to to private firms, but critics say it crowds out “We discussed the rule of law and how expand the Suez Canal. the private sector and hampers growth. creating an open political environment in A new company being created to up- Asked what had really changed in which individual rights are fully respected grade Egypt’s telecoms and internet infra- Egypt, with the Brotherhood back under- would further bolster Egypt’s ability to at- structure will also involve military-owned ground after a brief taste of power and a tract international investment,” Lew told firms, though Helmy said they would not former general back in the presidency, In- reporters in Cairo. dominate or control it. vestment Minister Ashraf Salman had a Housing Minister Mustafa Madbouly, simple answer: “Egyptians”. MILITARY’S ROLE whose ministry is working to meet bal- “The big change that’s coming this time On the economy, Egyptians are closely looning demand and find a solution to the is coming from Egyptians,” he said. “They watching Prime Minister Ibrahim Meh- country’s informal settlements, said the will not accept anymore somebody to be leb’s performance on employment and army could also run parallel development like Mubarak to stay in power for 30 years. housing, issues that helped foment the an- programmes. They will not accept anymore a minister ger behind the 2011 uprising. When Arabtec Holding, Dubai’s larg- like myself to stay on this seat for 20 years. Mehleb was realistic about how quickly est listed construction firm, agreed to build They will never accept that.” problems that had built up over decades one million houses in Egypt in a $40 bil- could be resolved, urging patience. lion project, it partnered directly with the “In economics, we began to open all the army rather than the government. Additional reporting by Michael Georgy, files that were not opened. We don’t hide “The military has its own economic and Stephen Kalin, Maggie Fick and Shadi Bushra anything from the people,” he told Reuters. financial arms which also have the right to in Cairo; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise

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Egypt’s Beltone Financial to spend $42 million expanding next year

BY EHAB FAROUK in seeking to get ahead of the expected rise activity on Egypt’s stock market, which CAIRO, OCTOBER 22, 2014 in asset values in the event of an economic should benefit firms such as Beltone. recovery over the next several years. Arabian Cement Co listed in Cairo in gypt’s Beltone Financial aims to in- It originally announced that it would May after raising $110 million in its ini- vest around 300 million Egyptian distribute a dividend of 7 pounds per share tial public offer, the first major one on the Epounds (26.12 million pounds) to for the 2013 financial year, but then sus- bourse for about three years; Egyptian Ex- expand its domestic operations next year pended that decision as it sought with bil- change chairman Mohamed Omran told because it believes the worst of the coun- lionaire Naguib Sawiris to buy a 20 percent Reuters this month that the exchange ex- try’s economic instability has passed, its stake in Egyptian investment bank EFG pected to approve 10 listings this year. chairman told Reuters. Hermes for about $257 million. “We are working on four new prima- “The entire world is open to us. I see that The purchase did not go through as the ry offerings, but all of them will occur in the transition period in Egypt has ended. bid consortium attracted offers of just un- 2015,” Saba said without naming the com- The investment opportunities that exist do- der half of the EFG Hermes shares which panies. mestically are the best that can be found in it sought. However, that setback does not “We have an offering with a value above the region,” Aladdin Saba said. appear to have dimmed Beltone’s ambi- 1 billion pounds, and another with a value “We will propose our expansion plan for tions. of around 750 million pounds. We can say 2015 to the board of directors. I envision us The company’s board decided this that the aggregate value of the four offers investing in the non-bank financial sector month not to distribute cash dividends and will exceed 2 billion pounds.” by setting up new firms, or by buying ex- to use the company’s liquidity instead to In April, the exchange granted Beltone isting businesses if they would enable us to fund its future expansion plans. the country’s first licence for exchange achieve our goal and save us time.” “The decision to distribute dividends traded funds (ETFs), a step towards deep- The optimism of Saba, who founded for 2013 was made under certain circum- ening trade in the stock market. Omran Beltone in 2002, is echoed by many Egyp- stances that have changed entirely, and our said he had expected ETF certificates to be tian financiers, who think the government policy too has changed,” Saba said in an in- offered earlier this year, and now believed is getting a grip on Egypt’s economic prob- terview at the Reuters Middle East Invest- they would be introduced by the end of lems after a three-year slump following the ment Summit. 2014. revolution of 2011. “The first sign of change was the com- Asked when Beltone might proceed With over 200 staff, Beltone has broker- pany heading towards acquiring a stake in with ETFs, Saba said: “At the earliest. Bel- age, asset management, investment bank- Hermes. Therefore we decided, whereas our tone is not waiting for anything. There are ing and private equity operations. Foreign policy was to be conservative and distribute still a few minor changes being made to the operations include offices in Dubai and cash dividends, to look into expansion and offering circular.” London. investment opportunities.” Earnings have slumped since last year, He added, “We have liquidity of 120 Writing by Azza Al Arabi; Editing by Andrew when they were inflated by one-off gains million pounds and this covers a portion Torchia such as a property sale. Consolidated net of the expansion that we are working on. income tumbled 84 percent from a year There may be a new stage of external fund- earlier to 11.0 million Egyptian pounds ing for the remainder of our investments, in the first half of 2014; revenues sank 26 either through a capital increase or through percent to 31.6 million pounds because of obtaining bank loans.” Follow Reuters Summits lower fee income. IPOS on : But the company has been one of the @reuters_summits most aggressive Egyptian financial firms Authorities are working to revive listing

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Builder Khodari may double capex to handle big Saudi projects

BY MARWA RASHAD RIYADH, OCTOBER 23, 2014

ajor Saudi Arabian construction firm Abdullah Abdul Mohsin Mal-Khodari and Sons says it may double its capital spending in coming years to cope with the work it hopes to do on the country’s big infrastructure projects. Saudi Arabia’s 855 billion riyal ($228 billion) state budget plan for 2014 slowed total spending growth to the lowest rate in a decade as the government became more fiscally cautious. But it still included funds to build 465 schools and 11 hospitals, and a 25 percent jump in spending on infra- structure such as roads, railways, ports and airports. Although global oil prices have tumbled A construction labourer works at the site of the development project of King Abdullah Road in Riyadh to four-year lows in the last few months, February 5, 2013. REUTERS/FAHAD SHADEED below levels which analysts believe the Saudi government needs to balance its budget, industry executives do not expect on financials, and ultimately a positive im- not rebound for a couple of years, then I major cutbacks in spending. pact on the bottom line.” would expect a more conservative spending The government has huge fiscal reserves Such projects will require raising an- policy to be employed.” which it can use if necessary to maintain nual capital expenditure above the levels of The stock market appears to endorse spending, while it views many of the proj- 150 to 250 million riyals seen in past years, Khodari’s expectations; the company’s ects as vital to improve public welfare - thus Khodari said. shares are up 82 percent so far this year, ensuring social peace - and to diversify the “From one project alone al-Khodari outpacing an 18 percent rise by the main economy beyond oil. could double its capex -so the trend up- Saudi market index . “Most of these projects will go into the wards in capex is a fair assumption.” LABOUR REFORMS tens of billions of riyals,” the construction The company reported a 23 percent firm’s chief executive Fawwaz al-Khodari year-on-year rise in third-quarter net profit As the employer of about 20,000 workers, said in an interview for the Reuters Middle to 15 million riyals, as its contract backlog al-Khodari has been acutely vulnerable to East Investment Summit. fell to 3.36 billion riyals as of Sept. 30 from Saudi Arabia’s sweeping labour market re- “The scope relevant to al-Khodari in 3.99 billion riyals a year earlier. forms, which aim to limit the use of foreign each of these projects could easily reach Khodari said Saudi government spend- workers and encourage the hiring of Saudi 7 or 8 billion. I am not necessarily saying ing on projects was only likely to drop if oil citizens by the private sector. that is what al-Khodari would capture, but prices slumped for at least two years. In 2011 the government imposed pen- that’s the potential of any one project... “For the immediate future, I see no alties on companies which failed to meet “So when al-Khodari gets its share, it slowdown in the projects stream. However, quotas for hiring Saudis, who tend to cost will have a substantial and material impact should the oil price decline continue and more to employ; a year later, it introduced

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A view of the King Abdullah Financial District in the Saudi capital Riyadh at sun set October 9, 2013. REUTERS/FAISAL AL NASSER

a levy of 2,400 riyals per year for every for- hit Saudi Arabia’s construction sector. bour market for construction firms to meet eigner which a company employed above He was referring to demands for govern- quotas, as many people did not have the the number of its Saudi workers. ments of some labour-exporting countries necessary qualifications, skills and work In April this year Khodari told Reuters to set minimum wages for their workers in ethic. Many Saudis were not willing to that his firm’s profit margins had been Saudi Arabia. Local media have reported work in non-administrative jobs or at re- eroded by more than 50 percent under the the Indian government plans to introduce mote sites, he explained. reforms, with an average annual cost im- such a policy; by some estimates, about 2 “I agree that when you are a 100-man pact of 50 million riyals. million Indians work in Saudi Arabia. company, you can hire five Saudis. But In his latest interview, however, Khodari “In cases where salaries have been 800 to when you are a 20,000-man company like said the impact had started to fade and that 900 riyals, we are now hearing talk of 1,500 al-Khodari and you have 1,600 Saudis that by the end of 2015 there would be very riyals as a minimum salary which is a huge you must hire, don’t I need to put at least little effect on his company’s financials, as increase...Clearly this would become a ma- 1,400 in the field? I cannot accommodate contracts negotiated before the reforms ex- jor issue in the contracting industry.” so many in the office.” ited the revenue stream. In addition, the Saudi labour ministry The end result is that some companies “The worst is behind us as far as the im- has been proposing to reduce maximum are hiring people just for the sake of meet- pact of the labour reforms goes. I am not weekly working hours for private sector ing quotas, Khodari said, urging all parties saying they have stopped, as reforms con- firms to 40 from 48, and to expand the concerned to work with construction com- tinue to change and we get initiatives from weekend to two days from one. Companies panies on finding a solution. time to time, but I think that the biggest could end up hiring more people to meet “Otherwise, in my opinion, 10 years shockwave...is fading. deadlines or paying extra overtime, Kho- down the line we could potentially have 3 “Quarter by quarter the impact is less dari said. million people who appear to be employed and less. Once we get beyond the second “The impact is mostly going to be a fi- but not really. Should there be a construc- half of 2015, we will have very little that nancial cost - it could be 10 percent or it tion slowdown, they will be unemployed, is still dragging along with our remaining could be 25 to 30 percent on the manpower have no skills and be dependent, and that contract backlog.” cost.” will be the biggest social time bomb.” Khodari warned, however, that future la- Khodari said there were simply not bour market reforms or changes could still enough Saudi citizens available in the la- Editing by Andrew Torchia

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Brokers monitor a screen displaying stock market index at an investment bank in Riyadh, June 9, 2013. REUTERS/FAISAL AL NASSER Saudi Fransi Capital says three big IPOs in pipeline as market booms

BY MARWA RASHAD and value from the previous year. and stimulate private sector growth, the RIYADH, OCTOBER 21, 2014 But volume and value are both set to rise Capital Market Authority announced in this year as the securities regulator encour- July that it would open the stock market to nvestment bank Saudi Fransi Capi- ages listings of companies which it believes direct foreign investment in the first half of tal has three big initial public offers contribute to economic growth. next year. Iof shares in the pipeline as the Saudi Although the main equity index has “We have an excellent deals pipeline... Arabian equity market booms and firms pulled back in the last two weeks because of We think we will see one IPO every quar- become keener to list, the company’s chief sliding oil prices and concern about global ter from Saudi Fransi Capital for the com- executive said. economic growth, it is still up 16 percent ing five quarters,” Yasir al-Rumayyan said The kingdom’s $550 billion stock mar- year-to-date and up 45 percent since the in an interview at the Reuters Middle East ket, by far the largest in the Arab world, end of 2012. Investment Summit. saw just five IPOs in 2013 worth a total of In a reform designed to increase the Each of the three big IPOs currently in around $506 million, down in both volume long-term efficiency of the Saudi economy Saudi Fransi’s pipeline is larger than 1 bil-

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lion riyals ($267 million), Rumayyan said: Sulaiman Al-Habib Medical Group, one of the largest private providers of health- care in the region; water and power project developer ACWA Power; and Petromin, a lubricants producer. “I have a bigger list than this one...We have another IPO in the steel sector, and one in building materials,” said Rumayyan, whose company is an arm of Saudi Arabia’s fourth-largest listed lender, Banque Saudi Fransi. Saudi Arabia’s National Commercial Bank is currently conducting a $6 billion IPO, the largest ever launched in the Arab world. ASSET MANAGEMENT The deepening of the Saudi stock market A man looks on as he sits next to a screen showing stock prices at the FALCOM investment bank in through IPOs and its opening to foreign Riyadh August 5, 2014. REUTERS/FAISAL AL NASSER investors are expected to support growth for asset managers in the kingdom. “Our assets under management (AUM) we have the international investors com- “That means those big corporations is about 10 billion riyals, but this number is ing in to the market, I think we will see a would have to tap the capital market, growing tremendously, as it was less than 5 minimum 15 to 20 percent increase in daily whether sukuk or bonds - this really is ex- billion in 2010,” Rumayyan said. volumes.” cellent news for financial advisors like us “We want to grow like 15 to 25 percent Like other Saudi executives, he said the who are involved in the capital market,” he on an annual basis, and we think it is doable plunge of global oil prices to four-year lows said, adding that Saudi Fransi was working because we have been doing it in the past in the past several weeks was unlikely to on two debt issues. He did not give details. three or four years.” hurt the economy or markets in the long Asked about the obstacles to developing Rumayyan said his company would open term, adding that the stock market had not Saudi Arabia’s debt market, Rumayyan said an office in Dubai to cater to international been closely correlated with oil for the past the problem was not on the regulators’ side investors in the brokerage and asset man- eight or 10 years. but among the issuers, who tended to pre- agement sectors. In the past, Saudi banks “If you want to look at the real economy, fer bank financing as long as they could get have rarely opened overseas offices, prefer- you have between three and five years of better rates. ring to focus on their domestic market. backlogs of projects today with government “The challenge now is to get good issu- The opening of the Saudi stock market spending, so the money is there. So even if ers to issue...Investors’ appetite here in Sau- to foreign institutional investors will even- this drop continues, you have a good three di is really big, and there are a lot of money tually bring between $30 billion and $60 to five years of continuous government market fund managers who are waiting for billion of funds into the bourse, especially projects.” and anticipating debt issuance.” if the market is ultimately admitted to the He added, however, that international DEBT MARKET MSCI emerging markets index, Rumayyan investors entering Saudi Arabia might not estimated. The fund inflows would spur Rumayyan also predicted strong growth find local debt issues attractive at present, trading volume and revenues at Saudi bro- for Saudi Arabia’s sukuk and conventional given their very low yields which are in kerages. bond markets, arguing that central bank some cases below even U.S. Treasuries. “If you look at the Saudi market cur- guidance to commercial banks on limiting rently, we are ranked number 15 worldwide their exposure to single clients would push in terms of the daily volume - definitely if borrowers to look beyond loans. Editing by Andrew Torchia

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Tunisia’s Minister for Economic Affairs Nidhal Ouerfelli speaks during an interview with Reuters in Tunis October 17, 2014. REUTERS/ZOUBEIR SOUISSI Tunisia to lift retirement age two years to ease fiscal plight

BY TAREK AMARA and a presidential ballot in November. months of 2015 would be very hard for TUNIS, OCTOBER 20, 2014 “Today, social funds suffer a large defi- the new government as it tackled painful cit and we are studying how to fix it effec- reforms to increase tax revenues and cut unisia will raise the normal retire- tively...We are going to raise the retirement energy subsidies. ment age by two years in 2015 to age two years from 2015,” Ouerfelli said in But he said the current government had Treduce the deficit in its social secu- an interview for the Reuters Middle East prepared a clear reform strategy for coming rity funds, as part of economic reforms de- Investment Summit. years, which would help the next govern- signed to stabilize state finances, minister He said the retirement age would rise to ment. Politicians in key parties contesting for economic affairs Nidhal Ouerfelli said. 62, and that the reform was justified since the election, including the secular interests The North African country is reorganiz- Tunisia was one of the few countries in the led by the Nida Tounes party and the Is- ing its economy as it nears the completion of region where the age was currently still 60. lamist Ennahda, have expressed support for a difficult transition to democracy over three The reform is not certain to go ahead, economic reforms in principle. years after the 2011 revolution that ousted since the new post-election government Tunisia hopes to reduce its state budget autocrat Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali. Parlia- will reshuffle the cabinet and may have dif- deficit to 5.0 percent of gross domestic product mentary elections are to be held on Oct. 26 ferent priorities. Ouerfelli said the initial in 2015 from 5.8 percent projected for 2014.

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While the country’s powerful 800,000-member UGTT labor union has Lebanese central bank urged the government to start immediate negotiations on raising public sector salaries, plans $1 billion stimulus for Ouerfelli said the critical financial situation would not allow talks to start this year. Officials in the UGTT have threatened 2015: governor to stage protests and even declare a general strike to pressure the government to accept immediate negotiations. BY MARIAM KAROUNY AND LAILA BASSAM However, Ouerfelli said the government BEIRUT, OCTOBER 23, 2014 was now finding it difficult to persuade the International Monetary Fund to disburse ebanon is planning a $1 billion eco- the final tranche of a two-year, $1.78 bil- nomic stimulus package for 2015 lion loan program because of the slow pace Lto maintain growth and support an of some reforms. Tunisia is under pressure economy which has been hit by a three- from its international lenders to restrain year conflict in neighboring Syria, the cen- public sector spending. tral bank governor said. Riad Salameh said he hoped the fresh BUDGET round of stimulus, which follows $800 mil- Ouerfelli revealed that Tunisia’s state budget lion in aid this year, will result in economic for next year would total about 29 billion growth of at least 2 percent next year. The dinars ($16.1 billion), up from 28 billion di- IMF in May forecast ’s economy nars in 2014, and that public sector wages to grow by 2 percent this year. would rise by about 800 million dinars. Speaking at the Reuters Middle East Lebanon’s Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh Total state spending on wages in 2015 Investment Summit, he described Leba- speaks during ACI Lebanon Golden Jubilee will reach 11 billion dinars, more than one- non’s financial situation as “solid”, pointing Grand Celebration, in Beirut September 1, 2014. third of the budget, he added. to foreign reserves he said have reached a REUTERS/MOHAMED AZAKIR “We cannot continue in this way if we historic high of over $38 billion while gold want to revive the economy and create reserves were at $13 billion. growth by financing development projects But the war in Syria, a huge influx of low borrowing rates for housing and new and infrastructure.” refugees and a domestic political stalemate projects, including renewable energy, and To fill next year’s budget gap, Tunisia is have hit Lebanon’s economy hard, prompt- extended loan terms for small and medi- again assembling a complex series of exter- ing the central bank to introduce a $1.4 um-sized businesses. nal financing plans. billion stimulus package in 2013 and $800 Besides providing housing loans, the “We will issue, probably in the first half million in aid this year. new aid will also be allocated to environ- of 2015, bonds worth $600 million,” Ouer- “The central bank will have another in- ment and renewable energy projects as well felli said without giving details. centive program of one billion dollars and as small projects, Salameh said. In addition, Tunisia aims to borrow we will be aggressively engaged in the pro- “We hope that growth will occur, as a about $450 million from the IMF next motion of knowledge economy,” Salameh result of this incentive, that is not less than year, $500 million from the World Bank, said. 2 percent.” $380 million from the “I will recommend to the central coun- Lebanon’s economy grew 8 percent a and $200 million from the African Devel- cil -- and there is a positive view towards year between 2007 and 2010, but has been opment Bank. this -- to (issue) a one billion stimulus relatively sluggish since the collapse of a credit package for 2015 with one percent unity government and the start of Syria’s interest.” The council is the central bank’s uprising in 2011. policy-making body. Tourism and construction, two main- Editing by Andrew Torchia The stimulus packages have comprised stays of the economy, have both suffered

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from Syria’s civil war, in addition to politi- cal instability, which has scared off wealthy Gulf Arab tourists and some investors. “Today the central bank has foreign li- quidity that exceeds $38 billion which his- torically (is) the highest, excluding the gold reserves,” he said. “We are launching these incentive pro- grams while keeping an eye that the liquid- ity we are injecting is not creating inflation or creating a drain on our foreign currency reserves.” Salameh said the overall aim of the bank was to maintain the stability of inter- est rates and the Lebanese pound LBP=, which is pegged near 1,507.5 to the dollar. REFUGEES CONCERN Lebanon, which hosts around 1.5 million Syrian refugees, has also seen violence spill over from Syria with bombings in Beirut, fighting in the northern city of Tripoli, and rocket attacks on Bekaa Valley towns close to the frontier. Apart from adding to the strain on elec- tricity and water supplies, the Lebanese re- sent Syrians for taking jobs, driving down wages and overloading schools and hospi- tals. Lebanese officials have repeatedly voiced concern that the growing number of refu- gees, estimated at a third of the Lebanese population of 4 million, threatens Leba- non’s economy and political stability and said the country needed more resources to address their needs. Finance minister Ali Hassan Khalil told Reuters on Wednesday that the country was getting little international help ease the impact of the refugees. Salameh, who has headed the central bank for more than 20 years echoed those sentiments. He said the international com- munity was not doing enough to help, add- like Lebanon has to pay the related costs into the numbers and will work with the ing that a trust fund created by the World which the World Bank has estimated, just World Bank to activate donations to Leba- Bank this year to help Lebanon has re- on the direct cost to the government, (to non.” ceived only $30 million so far. be) around a billion dollars a year,” he said. “Truly, it’s unfair that a small country “We hope that the IMF will look again Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise

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Iran nuclear deal would open last big frontier stock market

BY ANDREW TORCHIA DUBAI, OCTOBER 15, 2014

ears of economic sanctions and iso- lation have ravaged Iran’s economy Ybut created one of the last unex- ploited opportunities for international portfolio investors, who could start mov- ing their money in this year if geopolitics permit. The Stock Exchange is “the last, large untapped emerging market in the world”, said Ramin Rabii, managing direc- tor of Turquoise Partners, a Tehran-based investment firm with around $200 million of assets under management. Video cameras are set up for a news conference prior to a meeting between EU foreign policy chief Talks between Iran and world powers and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Vienna October 14, 2014. in Vienna this week aim to reach a deal on REUTERS/LEONHARD FOEGER Tehran’s disputed nuclear program. Iranian President said on Mon- day agreement was “certain”, though not telephone interview at the Reuters Middle most every area of the economy, from regu- necessarily before a self-imposed Nov. 24 East Investment Summit. lation of prices to restrictions on exports - deadline. “Now we are getting a few dozen emails partly the result of the “resistance economy” A deal would pave the way for the West every month and more important than which Iran established to withstand the to lift sanctions that have largely frozen Iran that, serious investors have come and vis- sanctions. out of the global banking system, deterring ited us. Turquoise has hosted more than 65 “Foreign investors may see government the vast majority of foreign investors. investors since January this year in Tehran.” interference in the economy as the biggest Those investors are expected to pour bil- risk in the market,” Rabii said. RISKS lions of dollars into Iran’s economy in the But the flip side of those issues is that event of a nuclear deal, but negotiating Investing in Iran will remain a risky busi- the market, which has a capitalization of contracts and obtaining licenses for busi- ness for years to come. Even if a nuclear about $120 billion at the official rial ex- ness ventures and factories could take many deal is reached, Rouhani will have to grap- change rate, roughly the same as Dubai’s, months. ple with hardline political rivals as he tries is by some measures one of the most attrac- So the fastest way to gain exposure to to push through sensitive social and eco- tively valued in the world. the Iranian economy may be the stock nomic reforms. The market’s main index soared 136 per- market - a prospect for which many foreign After shrinking in the past two years, the cent in local currency terms last year, partly funds have started to prepare. economy has resumed growing slowly, and because the election of Rouhani fanned “From 2011 to 2013, we used to get one inflation has come down near 20 percent hopes for a nuclear deal. It is down 18 email of interest from potential investors from over 40 percent last year. But the scars percent year-to-date as authorities tighten every two to three months,” Rabii, whose of sanctions include high unemployment monetary policy to curb inflation. firm is one of the main channels for for- and poor infrastructure. Rabii estimated the market was now eign portfolio investment in Iran, said in a The government’s presence is felt in al- trading at about 5-1/2 times this year’s

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projected earnings - well below about 11 times for MSCI’s frontier market index - and carried a dividend yield of around 15 percent, roughly three times most markets. Potential headaches for foreign investors in the market include red tape, the lack of international custodian banks, and low li- quidity, which can make it hard to get into and out of stocks, Rabii said; collecting dividends can be difficult. But he noted that the market had be- come more sophisticated over the past 10 years, despite sanctions. Fifteen years ago, for example, corporate earnings were an- nounced on pieces of paper pinned to a wall of the exchange; now they’re distributed via Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani replies to a question during a news conference on the sidelines of the a centralized online system. 69th General Assembly at United Nations Headquarters in New York September 26, While most of the big listed companies 2014. REUTERS/ADREES LATIF are still controlled by state-linked institu- tions such as pension and social security CHANNELS funds and various foundations, private in- group-wide staff to over 70 people. vestors have started to make their voices The experience of other markets suggests Soon after Turquoise was established, heard, Rabii said - managements can face fresh flows of foreign money into Iran’s was elected as tough questioning by shareholders at an- bourse could eventually total tens of bil- and inflows of foreign nual general meetings. lions of dollars. Foreigners own 20 or 30 money began to dry up, so the company In fact, the transfer of more of Iran’s percent of some emerging markets; Rabii was forced to focus on domestic investors. corporate wealth into private hands may estimated they now held less than 0.5 per- A plunge of the rial against the U.S. dol- be one of the most lucrative trends for the cent of Iranian stocks. lar in 2012 - it lost two-thirds of its value stock market in the next few years. It is likely to take years to close this gap, over 18 months - put severe pressure on Iran revived its privatization program in however. Even if a nuclear deal is reached Turquoise. 2006 and over 15 of the 30 biggest firms next month, banking ties with the outside Rabii, 35, was born and grew up in Iran; on the exchange have listed since then. But world will take months to be re-established, his family moved to Canada when he was the financial power of state-linked bodies and many banks and investors will be very a teenager. He studied at a boarding school meant they were able to buy up most of the cautious at first. in Switzerland and at SOAS, University of shares on offer, leaving the free floats of top “Even if sanctions are lifted tomorrow, I London. firms very small at around 5 to 10 percent. don’t think we can look for a flood of mon- After working briefly as a consultant in Financial pressures on government- ey into Iran tomorrow,” Rabii said, suggest- London, he moved to Tehran and chose a related bodies have now increased and the ing a few hundred million dollars of foreign career there partly, he says, out of patrio- Rouhani administration has said it wants money might enter in the first 12 months. tism, partly out of a sense of Iran’s potential, the private sector to play a bigger role in Large inflows of funds might take two and partly because of the chance to create the economy. years to appear, as big international banks something new. As foreign investors enter Iran in com- rebuild ties with Iran. “We have continued to hope for an up- ing years, there may be a “second wave of Turquoise, founded in 2005, says it has turn - and when the market opens up, it privatization” as state-linked funds facing about $70 million of foreign money and will be the largest opening up of a market liquidity pressure sell large stakes in major $130 million of local funds under manage- in recent times. This has kept us going.” companies to private investors, Rabii said. ment. It started as asset management com- “If there’s a buyer for such stakes, I am pany and has expanded into the brokerage Reporting by Andrew Torchia; Editing by certain to find a seller.” business and private equity, increasing its Olzhas Auyezov

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Sohar port challenges Gulf rivals as Oman pushes beyond oil

OIL RESERVES BY ANDREW TORCHIA tainer terminal, which is operated by Hong DUBAI, OCTOBER 16, 2014 Oman faces, in a more immediate and acute Kong’s Hutchison Whampoa. The proj- form, the dilemma which all the wealthy ect raised annual capacity to 1.5 million n advertisement by the highway Gulf oil exporters will face in coming de- twenty-foot equivalent units from 800,000 outside Dubai’s massive Jebel Ali cades: what to do when the oil runs out? TEUs, and allowed the port to handle large APort tells firms they don’t need to While Saudi Arabia, the United Arab container ships of 10,000 TEUs for the ship goods through the Strait of Hormuz, Emirates and Qatar have ample reserves to first time. the traditional gateway to the Gulf. Instead continue production of oil and gas for de- Sohar plans to increase its container ca- they can have goods delivered to a port in cades, Oman’s reserves are much smaller, so pacity further to 4 million TEUs in 2017 Oman, outside the Gulf, and bring them crunch time for it is likely to come sooner. at a cost of between 60 and 70 million ri- into the region by road. Estimates by multinational energy compa- als ($155-180 million), which is likely to be “Why go through the Strait when you ny BP have suggested Oman’s oil reserves raised through bank financing. can go straight to the Gulf,” the billboard could run out around 2030 at current pro- “Once that’s in place, you really start to reads, in a challenge to Jebel Ali, which duction rates. compete with other ports in the region,” has become one of the biggest ports in the So the government of ruler Sultan Qa- said Lammers, a Dutch veteran of the con- world by handling many of the region’s im- boos, 73, is ploughing billions of dollars tainer port and stevedoring industries who ports via Hormuz. into efforts to make the arid country of joined the company in 2009. The cheeky advertisement has been about 4 million people into a logistics and The company launched a free zone in posted by Sohar Port and Freezone, an am- industrial hub. 2010 with tax and other incentives to at- bitious facility on Oman’s northern coast Among big industrial and infrastructure tract companies’ logistics and manufactur- about 200 kilometres (125 miles) to the projects planned or underway are a $3.6 ing operations. Current operations include southeast of Dubai. billion plastics production complex to be auto parts storage and distribution, and a Sohar is starting to compete for traffic built in the city of Sohar, a $400 million chrome smelter; British-based Tri-Star with Jebel Ali and other top ports inside steel plant in the southern port city of Sa- Resources has said it plans to build a $60 the Gulf, as part of a far-reaching plan by lalah, a string of new or expanded airports, million plant supplying about 12 percent Oman to diversify its economy beyond oil. and a $15 billion plan to build a 2,244 kilo- of current global production of antimony, a Its plan says a lot about how business in the metre rail network, the country’s first. metallic substance used in many alloys. region may develop in coming years. Sohar port will handle many of the im- After a cyclone in 2007 disrupted Edwin Lammers, Sohar’s executive ports Oman needs for its industrialisation Oman’s food supplies, the government commercial manager, said the port’s inten- and exports which it hopes to produce. The wants to stockpile food reserves at Sohar; tion to handle cargo for the Gulf region, Omani government and the Port of Rot- grain silos will be established there next not just Oman, was a key part of the coun- terdam set up a 50:50 joint venture to run year. Oman’s first sugar refinery will also be try’s drive to industrialise. the port in 2002. built at the port, with an eventual annual “It brings down supply chain costs for This year Sohar completed a $130 mil- capacity of 1 million tonnes of sugar. Oman,” he said in a telephone interview at lion relocation and expansion of its con- The entire Gulf depends heavily on food the Reuters Middle East Investment Sum- imports so Sohar hopes it can ultimately mit. “Once you have the additional capac- serve as a food reserve storage centre for ity, new shipping lines come in, feeder lines the region, not just Oman, Lammers said. operate and costs fall due to economies of RISKS scale.” Oman’s strategy carries risks. One is re-

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gional overcapacity. Deep-pocketed Dubai, ity of overkill,” said Lammers. of this year and Sohar should be connected Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Kuwait all plan to But he added: “They all fulfill their own to the system three years after that, Lam- expand their port capacity to seek regional role in the regional supply chain. With the mers said. business; a project underway at Jebel Ali economy in the region growing at 6 per- The GCC rail network “will have a will add 4 million TEUs, bringing total ca- cent, it’s something they need to do.” game-changing effect on logistics in the pacity to 19 million TEUs in 2015. And Sohar has some cards up its sleeve. region”, he said. Container traffic at Sohar has not been As long as geopolitical tensions persist in Just as the Port of Rotterdam became a growing rapidly in recent months - it to- the Gulf, the port’s location outside the gateway to Europe, serving the European talled 103,023 TEUs in the first half of Strait of Hormuz has a potential security hinterland, “we expect something similar to this year, down from 110,453 a year earlier. advantage. Iran has threatened in past years happen in Sohar.” Sohar’s plans are based on the assump- to close the narrow Strait, but would find it tion that rapid economic and population harder to project its naval power across the Reporting by Andrew Torchia; Editing by growth will continue around the region in Gulf of Oman. Olzhas Auyezov coming years. The future Omani rail system, which About 300,000 TEUs of annual con- is to be connected to a planned railway tainer business was transferred to Sohar network across the six Gulf Cooperation in the second half of this year when all of Council countries, may give a big boost to Muscat’s commercial traffic was relocated Sohar, helping it to handle larger amounts to Sohar. of heavy imports for the GCC such as au- “When you have plans for 20 million tomobiles and steel products. TEU capacity in both Dubai and Abu The design contract for the Omani rail- Dhabi, one can start to talk of the possibil- way is expected to be awarded by the end

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Investcorp wants 30 percent rise in assets under management

BY DAVID FRENCH “(Roberto) Cavalli approached us but we the industrial and medical gases firm. DUBAI, OCTOBER 23, 2014 didn’t look at the deal, but Versace we did,” SUCCESSION Shroogi said, adding it walked away from nvestcorp is targeting a more than 30 the Versace deal as Investcorp thought it Shroogi will take up the role of co-chief percent hike in its assets under manage- was too expensive. executive officer in June 2015, along with Iment (AUMs) in the next five years as “Once in a while you’ll find a brand current chief financial officer Rishi Kapoor, Middle Eastern investors increasingly see name that you’ll look at and if that brand when current head Nemir Kirdar retires. private equity as a way to diversify out of name is an opportunity then we will bring Kirdar helped found the firm 32 years traditional investment routes. that opportunity.” ago so his departure is a landmark in the Those in the region with money to invest company’s history. It also highlights a key DEAL FLOW have historically placed it in real estate and trend in business across the region - how do the stock market, meaning that the region Investcorp targets deals in the mid-market you successfully pass control from a patriar- represents a tiny fraction of global private space of around $200 million to $300 million chal figurehead who has built up the firm to equity assets despite its affluence. in the , Europe and the Middle a new generation of leaders. However, the increasing sophistication East. After fully acquiring an asset, it sells be- “The founder has built up a name for of Middle Eastern investors means they tween 85 and 90 percent to its clients. himself not only regionally but also glob- are beginning to allocate more of their cash It is currently looking to complete three ally, and he put the Investcorp name on the to private equity, which is a boon for firms private equity buys, one each in Europe, map,” Shroogi said of Kirdar. in the region, according to Mohammed al- the United States and Turkey, Shroogi said, “But this is a normal change and a Shroogi, president of Gulf business at alter- while the firm is also close to signing a real healthy change. All his hard work and native investment firm Investcorp. estate deal in the U.S.. He declined to elab- planning is being transferred to the new “The two pipes of real estate and equity are orate on details. team, and Investcorp will succeed because almost full so you need to create a third pipe, So far this year, the firm has closed deals it has the foundations.” which is private equity,” Shroogi told the Re- including Dutch printing products firm While the succession may not impact uters Middle East Investment Summit. SPGPrints Group, which it was currently the firm, Investcorp and the private equity “The third pipe isn’t going to be filled marketing to clients and which should sector in general have changed significantly but there is a huge room for the liquidity to close soon, and U.S. accessories brand Totes in the past five years as they deal with the transfer and diversify away from these other Isotoner Corp, which it bought with Free- fallout from the global financial crisis. two investment opportunities in the Gulf.” man Spogli & Co.. For Investcorp, it has substantially re- Founded in 1982, making it one of the Each investment the firm makes, it duced the role of debt in its business, with its oldest Middle Eastern private equity hous- targets a return of three times its original leverage ratio down from 3.7 times five years es, Investcorp is best known in the global outlay, Shroogi said, a figure it exceeded ago to around 1.2 times today, Shroogi said. space for listing luxury goods brands such in its last exit when it sold Berlin Packag- It also now keeps $1 billion of cash on as Gucci and Tiffany & Co. (TIF.N). ing to Oak Hill Capital for $1.43 billion, its balance sheet so that it can pay off its With $11.4 billion of AUMs as of June 3.5-times more than it bought it for. outstanding debt if needed, which at the 30 this year, it is aiming to raise this to Shroogi said it was considering exits same time gives it the money to do deals if $15 billion in the next five years, although from a number of its current investments. they materialize. Shroogi admits the figure is conservative. One potential exit which had been cited “When we see something, we can pow- But the era of being known only as a in the media was for Gulf Cryo. Shroogi erfully acquire that company because we luxury brands investor has passed for In- said while it was always holding talks with have the liquidity in our hands.” vestcorp, despite being heavily linked with banks and other parties about possible two such names in the past 12 months. deals, there were no imminent plans to sell Editing by Keith Weir

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Summit Speakers

Khalifa Abdullah Al-Sowaidi Brahim Benjelloun-Touimi Mustafa Madbouly CEO Managing director Housing minister Qatar Fertiliser Company BMCE Bank Government of Egypt

Salem al-Noaimi Hany Kadry Dimian Elham Yousry Mahfouz CEO Finance minister CEO Waha Capital Government of Egypt Commercial Bank of Kuwait

Muhammad al-Agil Ziad Fariz Ibrahim Mehleb Chairman Governor Prime minister Jarir Group Jordanian central bank Government of Egypt

Ashraf al-Arabi Alain Hakim Mohamed Omran Planning minister Economy and trade minister Chairman Government of Egypt Government of Lebanon Egyptian Exchange

Fawwaz al-Khodari Mohammad Hamed Nidhal Ouerfelli CEO Minister of Energy and Mineral Minister for economic affairs Abdullah A. M. Al Khodari Sons Resources Government of Tunisia Company Government of Jordan

Yasir al-Rumayyan Atef Helmy Paddy Padmanathan CEO Telecommunications minister CEO Saudi Fransi Capital Government of Egypt ACWA Power

Yousef al-Shelash Mehdi Jomaa Ramin Rabii Chairman Prime Minister CEO Dar Al-Arkan Real Estate Development Government of Tunisia Turquoise Partners Group Co

Mohammed al-Shroogi Ali Hassan Khalil Aladdin Saba President of Gulf Business Finance minister Chairman Investcorp Government of Lebanon Beltone Financial Holding

Ahmed Badrawi Edwin Lammers Riad Salame Managing director Executive commercial manager Governor SODIC Sohar Port and Freezone Lebanese Central Bank

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Ashraf Salman Investment minister Government of Egypt

Sherif Samy Chairman Egyptian Financial Supervisory Authority

David Smoot CEO Dubai International Capital

Tarek Sultan CEO Agility

Safwan Thabet Chairman Juhayna

Ghada Wali Minister of Social Solidarity Government of Egypt

Hisham Zaazou Tourism minister Government of Egypt

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Andrew Torchia [email protected] Caroline Drees [email protected] Jack Stubbs [email protected]

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