A financial technology company that lends money to businesses on stock in their warehouse is set to launch in the Middle East after signing an agreement with an Abu Dhabi-based partner.
Supply@ME, a FinTech company owned by Italy's Avantgarde Group, signed an agreement with Khaled AlMass's iMass Investments, to pilot an inventory monetisation programme, according to a statement on the London Stock Exchange, where the company's shares trade.
The accord will be complete by the end of the first quarter of next year. Manufacturers or funders taking part in the pilot scheme were not named.
“The UAE has a proven track record of investing in FinTech initiatives to support the real economy and we are very pleased to be part of that trend,” Alessandro Zamboni, chief executive of Supply@Me Capital, said.
Supply@Me was listed on the London Stock Exchange in March this year, raising £2.4 million (Dh11.5m).
The company has created a FinTech platform that can lend money to businesses with tangible, re-sellable assets that are used as security for the loans but which remain in customers’ warehouses, tracked by a monitoring platform.
These loans are then securitised and sold on to investors, and in the event of a company defaulting the stock can be re-sold.
Last month Supply@Me said it has a pipeline of client companies worth €555m (Dh2.4 billion), which it expects to monetise once inventory funding is secured. It expects to issue its first securitised notes by the end of this year.
Supply@Me’s initial focus has been on Europe, but it said the agreement with iMass paves the way for a rollout across the Middle East. iMass was founded in 2007 by Mr AlMass, who is a board member of Taqa, healthcare insurer Daman and Saudi Enaya Cooperative Insurance.
iMass has carried out analysis of the UAE market that estimates there is the potential to monetise up to $50bn (Dh183.6bn) of imported inventory as well as $28bn of locally-produced, non-oil goods.
“We're very excited to have an opportunity to work closely with iMass and Mr Almass in the UAE," Mr Zamboni said. "Bringing such financial services professionals and their extensive network of business connections and local knowledge into partnership with us should give SYME the opportunity to launch and scale-up well in this region.”
Get Out
Director: Jordan Peele
Stars: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Catherine Keener, Bradley Whitford
Four stars
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
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Destroyer
Director: Karyn Kusama
Cast: Nicole Kidman, Toby Kebbell, Sebastian Stan
Rating: 3/5
UAE release: January 31
Volunteers offer workers a lifeline
Community volunteers have swung into action delivering food packages and toiletries to the men.
When provisions are distributed, the men line up in long queues for packets of rice, flour, sugar, salt, pulses, milk, biscuits, shaving kits, soap and telecom cards.
Volunteers from St Mary’s Catholic Church said some workers came to the church to pray for their families and ask for assistance.
Boxes packed with essential food items were distributed to workers in the Dubai Investments Park and Ras Al Khaimah camps last week. Workers at the Sonapur camp asked for Dh1,600 towards their gas bill.
“Especially in this year of tolerance we consider ourselves privileged to be able to lend a helping hand to our needy brothers in the Actco camp," Father Lennie Connully, parish priest of St Mary’s.
Workers spoke of their helplessness, seeing children’s marriages cancelled because of lack of money going home. Others told of their misery of being unable to return home when a parent died.
“More than daily food, they are worried about not sending money home for their family,” said Kusum Dutta, a volunteer who works with the Indian consulate.
French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
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The biog
Year of birth: 1988
Place of birth: Baghdad
Education: PhD student and co-researcher at Greifswald University, Germany
Hobbies: Ping Pong, swimming, reading
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
Herc's Adventures
Developer: Big Ape Productions
Publisher: LucasArts
Console: PlayStation 1 & 5, Sega Saturn
Rating: 4/5
