Lunch with Ali Jaber rarely goes uninterrupted. During a meeting over shwarmas and shisha, suited friends and acquaintances - and sometimes strangers - stop to greet the media executive.
He seems to know everyone, at least in the Dubai Media City bubble. But that is not surprising, given the mark he has made on the regional media industry.
Mr Jaber, 49, moved to Dubai in 2003 to be a media consultant in the restructuring of the Dubai Media Incorporated (DMI) television network. But that is not where he earned such a popular following.
That came early this year when he appeared as a judge on Arabs Got Talent, a Middle Eastern version of the international TV talent show, where he earned a reputation for plain speaking.
He laughs off the inevitable comparisons to the British media executive Simon Cowell, the bossy and blunt judge on the UK version of the show.
While he may not be as recognisable internationally as Mr Cowell, Mr Jaber certainly became a household name in the Arab world.
But in September he will start his biggest job to date, as group TV director of MBC, the Arab world's largest broadcaster. As part of the role, he will be responsible for liaising with some of the largest media companies around the globe.
His duties will include arranging content deals for MBC's ninechannels and he will face the challenge of maintaining MBC's lead in television advertising revenue amid mounting competition.
On top of all this, though, he plans to remain a judge on Arabs Got Talent. So, can he, like Simon Cowell, juggle the demands of a successful career as a media executive with high-profile appearances in front of the camera?
Mr Jaber sees nothing strange about taking the senior position at MBC while continuing to be a judge on Arabs Got Talent.
"It's actually in total alignment of interests," he says. "It's a fantastic brand. It's a huge show."
In fact, Arabs Got Talent is an example of the type of production that Mr Jaber would like to focus on in his new job at MBC. He calls it "good quality production".
The glamour of TV and executive suites aside, Mr Jaber has an academic bent.He is dean of the journalism school at the American University in Dubai, has taught communication in his native Lebanon and is studying for a PhD at Cambridge.
His thesis is on the history of Arab satellite television between 1990 and 2010. "Basically the story of my life, and basically the story of MBC as well," he says.
All of this seems a long way from Nabatiyeh, a town in southern Lebanon where he grew up and where his father, who died in 1997, was mayor. But Mr Jaber says Nabatiyeh is now a "ghost town".
"Our house was bombed six times, [and] I was injured three times," he says. "We moved to Beirut in 1976 when it became unbearable to live in Nabatiyeh due to the constant Israeli shelling."
After studying business administration at the American University in Beirut, Mr Jaber moved to New York to study for a master's degree in communication at Syracuse University. In 1986 he returned to Lebanon, at a time when many others were fleeing the country because of the civil war.
Soon after he arrived, he picked up work as a war correspondent for The New York Times, The Timesand the German Press Agency - and also taught at the local university.
Mr Jaber quickly made friends in the right places. Working as a journalist, he had the opportunity to interview the late Rafik Hariri, who became prime minister of Lebanon in 1992. What started as a professional relationship turned into a friendship.
"My work as a journalist led me to meet Hariri himself," said Mr Jaber. "I got along very, very well with him personally. I was among the youngest people in his team. We knew each other, we hit it off . He considered me one of his family."
It was Hariri who gave Mr Jaber his big break in the business of media. In 1992, he was asked to set up Future TV, Hariri's television network, which is still in operation.
A decade later, Mr Jaber got a call from advisers to another political figure - Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. He was asked to move to Dubai to work as a media consultant involved in restructuring the TV operation of the government-owned DMI.
What was supposed to be a one-year posting to Dubai turned into permanent residency in the UAE.
And so Dubai became home to Mr Jaber, his wife, Tamara, and their two teenage children.
"I was supposed to come here for one year, and I stayed for eight," he says. "Home is always going to be in Beirut. If I was to choose where to die, I'd like it to be there. But Dubai is also a home to me."
Mr Jaber, who turns 50 next month, was in Dubai on Valentine's Day in 2005 when he heard that Hariri had been assassinated.
"A friend of mine called me up and said there had been a big explosion in Beirut. I turned on the television and immediately guessed it was an assassination attempt against Hariri. I just felt it," he says.
Mr Jaber welcomed the recent indictments after a lengthy UN investigation into the assassination but hopes the process will not be compromised.
"I hope that this tribunal brings the real culprits to justice. I hope it's not used for political purposes other than finding the real killers of Rafik Hariri."
As he joins MBC Group, which is privately owned by Saudi investors, Mr Jaber is quick to point out that it has "close ties" to Dubai.
"My move to MBC was blessed by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who considers MBC part of his family anyway," he says.
MBC is by far the largest broadcaster in the Arab world, taking in at least half of the regional TV advertising revenue, which totals more than US$1 billion (Dh3.67bn) annually.
He says he will be standing on the shoulders of his predecessor, Tim Riordan, who is retiring in October.
"If it ain't broken, why fix it?" says Mr Jaber. "MBC is a very well-oiled machine. It's working. I just have to fit into their system and try to bring a new outlook, my outlook, into the conversation."
Nick Grande, the managing director of ChannelSculptor, a television consultancy in Dubai, says Mr Jaber's challenge will be to sustain MBC's market dominance.
"There is no TV market of any size, anywhere, that has a broadcaster that is so dominant," says Mr Grande. "One key challenge for Tim's successor will be to sustain and advance MBC Group's viewership, when the network is already in such a dominant position."
Yet it is difficult to imagine a better fit for MBC than Mr Jaber, who has won the respect of many in the industry. Both Mr Riordan and his successor are big names in the industry, says Mr Grande.
"You're talking about replacing one huge figure in the industry with another, which is a smart move," he says.
Despite the glamorous world he inhabits, one feels that with the MBC job, Mr Jaber's lunchtime shisha will soon be interrupted by even more people wearing suits.
bflanagan@thenational.ae
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
Jordan cabinet changes
In
- Raed Mozafar Abu Al Saoud, Minister of Water and Irrigation
- Dr Bassam Samir Al Talhouni, Minister of Justice
- Majd Mohamed Shoueikeh, State Minister of Development of Foundation Performance
- Azmi Mahmud Mohafaza, Minister of Education and Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research
- Falah Abdalla Al Ammoush, Minister of Public Works and Housing
- Basma Moussa Ishakat, Minister of Social Development
- Dr Ghazi Monawar Al Zein, Minister of Health
- Ibrahim Sobhi Alshahahede, Minister of Agriculture and Minister of Environment
- Dr Mohamed Suleiman Aburamman, Minister of Culture and Minister of Youth
Out
- Dr Adel Issa Al Tawissi, Minister of High Education and Scientific Research
- Hala Noaman “Basiso Lattouf”, Minister of Social Development
- Dr Mahmud Yassin Al Sheyab, Minister of Health
- Yahya Moussa Kasbi, Minister of Public Works and Housing
- Nayef Hamidi Al Fayez, Minister of Environment
- Majd Mohamed Shoueika, Minister of Public Sector Development
- Khalid Moussa Al Huneifat, Minister of Agriculture
- Dr Awad Abu Jarad Al Mushakiba, Minister of Justice
- Mounir Moussa Ouwais, Minister of Water and Agriculture
- Dr Azmi Mahmud Mohafaza, Minister of Education
- Mokarram Mustafa Al Kaysi, Minister of Youth
- Basma Mohamed Al Nousour, Minister of Culture
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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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.”
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
A Bad Moms Christmas
Dir: John Lucas and Scott Moore
Starring: Mila Kunis, Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Bell, Susan Sarandon, Christine Baranski, Cheryl Hines
Two stars
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs: 2018 Opel Mokka X
Price, as tested: Dh84,000
Engine: 1.4L, four-cylinder turbo
Transmission: Six-speed auto
Power: 142hp at 4,900rpm
Torque: 200Nm at 1,850rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L / 100km
The End of Loneliness
Benedict Wells
Translated from the German by Charlotte Collins
Sceptre
How to play the stock market recovery in 2021?
If you are looking to build your long-term wealth in 2021 and beyond, the stock market is still the best place to do it as equities powered on despite the pandemic.
Investing in individual stocks is not for everyone and most private investors should stick to mutual funds and ETFs, but there are some thrilling opportunities for those who understand the risks.
Peter Garnry, head of equity strategy at Saxo Bank, says the 20 best-performing US and European stocks have delivered an average return year-to-date of 148 per cent, measured in local currency terms.
Online marketplace Etsy was the best performer with a return of 330.6 per cent, followed by communications software company Sinch (315.4 per cent), online supermarket HelloFresh (232.8 per cent) and fuel cells specialist NEL (191.7 per cent).
Mr Garnry says digital companies benefited from the lockdown, while green energy firms flew as efforts to combat climate change were ramped up, helped in part by the European Union’s green deal.
Electric car company Tesla would be on the list if it had been part of the S&P 500 Index, but it only joined on December 21. “Tesla has become one of the most valuable companies in the world this year as demand for electric vehicles has grown dramatically,” Mr Garnry says.
By contrast, the 20 worst-performing European stocks fell 54 per cent on average, with European banks hit by the economic fallout from the pandemic, while cruise liners and airline stocks suffered due to travel restrictions.
As demand for energy fell, the oil and gas industry had a tough year, too.
Mr Garnry says the biggest story this year was the “absolute crunch” in so-called value stocks, companies that trade at low valuations compared to their earnings and growth potential.
He says they are “heavily tilted towards financials, miners, energy, utilities and industrials, which have all been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic”. “The last year saw these cheap stocks become cheaper and expensive stocks have become more expensive.”
This has triggered excited talk about the “great value rotation” but Mr Garnry remains sceptical. “We need to see a breakout of interest rates combined with higher inflation before we join the crowd.”
Always remember that past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. Last year’s winners often turn out to be this year’s losers, and vice-versa.
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