There is rich, and then there is Carlos Slim Helu. The Mexican telecommunications tycoon has hopped over the internet software king Bill Gates and the investment "sage" Warren Buffett to take the top spot on Forbes magazine's annual global list of billionaires.
In a remarkable acceleration of fortunes, Carlos Slim, as he is known in the business world, saw his net worth rise by US$18.5 billion (Dh67.94bn) last year to $53.5bn after building a telecoms empire two decades ago. Just behind him came Mr Gates, 54, the chairman of Microsoft, whose net worth increased $13bn to $53bn. Mr Buffett, 79, the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, was in third spot with $47bn, a jump of $10bn.
"We've been watching Slim for a while and kind of wondered when the stars would align and he would take over," said Luisa Kroll, a Forbes senior editor. Mr Slim's Telefonos de Mexico remains the biggest landline phone company in the country, with about 80 per cent of the lines. His Telmex Internacional, which America Movil is planning to buy, controls Brazil's biggest long-distance and cable-TV companies, as well as phone and video carriers in Colombia, Peru and other South American countries.
In Mexico, the 70-year-old's holdings extend from retail, with the Sanborns chain of department stores, pharmacies and restaurants, to banking and construction. "His management of America Movil, which I believe is the principal reason for his wealth, has been exceptional," said Jose Miguel Garaicochea, who helps to manage $793 million of shares, including stock in the wireless carrier, at Banco Santander. "And when he has gone outside of Mexico, he has also done very well."
The number of billionaires around the world has nearly recovered this year after dropping by a third last year during the global financial crisis. There are now 1,011 billionaires, compared with 793 last year and 1,125 in 2008. The net wealth of those billionaires grew to $3.6 trillion from $2.4tn last year, but is still down from $4.4tn in 2008, according to the Forbes list, which took a snapshot of the super-rich on February 12 to compile its ranking.
The average billionaire is now worth $3.5bn, up $500m from last year. And the number of women on the list climbed to 89 from 72 last year. "The global economy is recovering and it's reflected in what you see in the list this year," said Steve Forbes, the chief executive of Forbes. "Financial markets have also made an even more impressive comeback from the lows of just about a year ago, particularly in emerging markets. Asia is leading the comeback."
The number of billionaires in the Asia-Pacific region grew by 80 per cent to 234, and their net worth almost doubled to $729bn, which Forbes attributed to the region's "swelling stock markets and several large public offerings during the past year". "The global boom that we experienced from the 1980s, particularly since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, which was temporarily derailed in 2007, now looks like it's beginning to get back on track," Mr Forbes, said in New York. "But Asia and a handful of others are surging. Relatively, the US and western Europe are lagging."
Away from the big three, two Indian tycoons rounded out the top five richest people in the world - Mukesh Ambani, with a petrochemicals, oil and gas fortune of $29bn, and the steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, who is valued at $28.7bn. The biggest gainer on the list was the Brazilian mining magnate Eike Batista, 52, with $27bn, up from $7.5bn. He made his riches through the initial public offerings of several companies and is now planning to take his shipbuilding and oil services concern OSX public next week.
Of the 97 names making their debut on the rich list, 62 are from Asia. "For the first time, mainland China has the most billionaires outside the US," Forbes magazine said. "US citizens still dominate the ranks but their grip is slipping." Behind the figures, the Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, 25, is the world's youngest billionaire, with a $4bn fortune. The second-youngest is Japan's Yoshikazu Tanaka, 33, the founder of the social-networking website Gree, who is worth $1.4bn. The oldest is 99-year-old Walter Haefner of Switzerland, who is worth $3.3bn.
But the numbers do not tell the whole story. While the wealth of Mr Gates and Mr Buffett far exceeds that of others in the top 10, they would have been even richer if they had not given away a lot of their money. "They would be far richer today if it wasn't for their tremendous philanthropy," said Matthew Miller, a Forbes senior editor. "Buffett would be worth at least $55bn - and Gates' net worth would exceed $80bn had it not been for his philanthropy."
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Read more from Kareem Shaheen
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
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
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
All the Money in the World
Director: Ridley Scott
Starring: Charlie Plummer, Mark Wahlberg, Michelle Williams, Christopher Plummer
Four stars
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
PROFILE
Name: Enhance Fitness
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 200
Amount raised: $3m
Investors: Global Ventures and angel investors
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.”
The essentials
What: Emirates Airline Festival of Literature
When: Friday until March 9
Where: All main sessions are held in the InterContinental Dubai Festival City
Price: Sessions range from free entry to Dh125 tickets, with the exception of special events.
Hot Tip: If waiting for your book to be signed looks like it will be timeconsuming, ask the festival’s bookstore if they have pre-signed copies of the book you’re looking for. They should have a bunch from some of the festival’s biggest guest authors.
Information: www.emirateslitfest.com
Company profile
Company name: Dharma
Date started: 2018
Founders: Charaf El Mansouri, Nisma Benani, Leah Howe
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: TravelTech
Funding stage: Pre-series A
Investors: Convivialite Ventures, BY Partners, Shorooq Partners, L& Ventures, Flat6Labs
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
Medicus AI
Started: 2016
Founder(s): Dr Baher Al Hakim, Dr Nadine Nehme and Makram Saleh
Based: Vienna, Austria; started in Dubai
Sector: Health Tech
Staff: 119
Funding: €7.7 million (Dh31m)
The biog
Age: 23
Occupation: Founder of the Studio, formerly an analyst at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi
Education: Bachelor of science in industrial engineering
Favourite hobby: playing the piano
Favourite quote: "There is a key to every door and a dawn to every dark night"
Family: Married and with a daughter
