Jack Ma, billionaire and chairman of Alibaba Group Holding. Bloomberg
Jack Ma, billionaire and chairman of Alibaba Group Holding. Bloomberg
Jack Ma, billionaire and chairman of Alibaba Group Holding. Bloomberg
Jack Ma, billionaire and chairman of Alibaba Group Holding. Bloomberg

Billionaires: Jack Ma’s Ant Group plans dual listings in Hong Kong and Shanghai


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Jack Ma

Billionaire Jack Ma’s Ant Group is seeking a valuation of more than $200 billion (Dh734.6bn) as it goes public in Hong Kong and Shanghai, kicking off a much-anticipated market debut for China’s leader in internet finance.

The parent of mobile payments company Alipay said it will pursue a simultaneous dual-listing in Hong Kong and on the Shanghai stock exchange’s STAR board. Ant is already more richly valued than most Wall Street companies and, if conditions are favourable, it could seek to raise more in its initial public offerings than Saudi Aramco’s record $29bn haul.

The crown jewel of the sprawling Alibaba empire, Ant has hastened its evolution into an online mall for everything from loans and travel services to food delivery in a bid to win back shoppers lost to Tencent.

Ant’s chief executive Simon Hu said he wants people to think of Alipay as more than just a niche provider of financial services and the payments gateway for the world’s biggest e-commerce platform. Part of that is to grow Ant’s reach in Asia, where it has been working with digital payment providers in India and Thailand, as well as offering its expertise in wealth management and risk controls.

Ant picked China International Capital, Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase and Morgan Stanley for its Hong Kong offering, which could raise about $10bn, sources said.

The Alibaba affiliate is the latest major Chinese company to seek a listing closer to home as increased trade tension makes New York’s capital markets less desirable.

Semiconductor Manufacturing International raised $7.5bn from a Shanghai share sale in July that ranks as the world’s biggest new stock offering this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Some Chinese internet companies including JD.com and NetEase also added second listings in Hong Kong this year.

“Despite abundant capital, it is not sure how investors would view Ant Group since there are a lot of tech stocks in the market,” said Pamela Chung, managing director and head of IPO at consultancy Hong Kong-based Tricor Group.

While Ant has begun working with bankers on the Hong Kong debut, more advisers could be added at a later stage and details of the offering could change as deliberations are continuing.

Ant, valued at $150bn in its last funding round, generated $2bn in profit in the fourth quarter of last year, based on calculations made from Alibaba’s filing.

Like Alibaba, Ant hit the brakes on its US expansion as tension between America and China escalated. Mr Ma said in 2018 that his promise to create one million jobs in the US was a challenge to fulfil because of the trade row between the two countries.

Instead, Ant has focused on building its presence in the rest of Asia, where it is working with nine payment start-ups, including the owners of Paytm in India and GCash in the Philippines. Domestically, it is expanding into consumer and technology services.

Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries. Courtesy: World Economic Forum
Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries. Courtesy: World Economic Forum

Mukesh Ambani

After raising more than $20bn for his digital venture in three months, billionaire Mukesh Ambani, 63, is preparing his retail unit to welcome global partners as his oil-to-petrochemicals conglomerate turns to India’s billion-plus consumers for growth.

Asia’s richest man and the chairman of Reliance Industries told shareholders that Reliance Retail was receiving enquiries from investors and may start bringing some on board in the coming months.

“We have received strong interest from strategic and financial investors in Reliance Retail,” Mr Ambani said. “We will induct global partners and investors in Reliance Retail in the next few quarters.”

The time has come for a truly global digital product and services company to emerge from India, and to be counted among the best in the world

He identified technology and retail as future growth areas in a pivot away from the energy businesses that he inherited from his father who died in 2002.

Retail is the next frontier for Mr Ambani, who recently sold about 33 per cent of his digital venture to a group of investors including Silicon Valley companies Facebook and Google over the past three months in deals that valued Jio Platforms at $58bn.

Reliance Retail, which runs supermarkets, India’s largest consumer electronics chain shop, a cash-and-carry wholesaler, fast-fashion outlets and an online grocery store called JioMart, reported 1.63 trillion Indian rupees (Dh80.1bn) in revenue in the year through to March 2020. The unit operates about 12,000 shops in about 7,000 towns.

Most of Mr Ambani’s focus during the 93-minute presentation to shareholders was on technology. He unveiled a series of services, including a fifth-generation wireless network as early as next year and a mega video-streaming platform that will bring Netflix, Disney+ Hotstar, Amazon Prime and dozens of other TV channels under one umbrella.

“I believe that the time has come for a truly global digital product and services company to emerge from India, and to be counted among the best in the world,” Mr Ambani said.

Jio Platforms, unveiled last year, is now at the centre of his ambition to tap a billion Indians increasingly embracing mobile devices and data plans to shop online.

The company is focused on an opportunity to shake up the retail, content streaming, digital payments, education and healthcare segments.

Virgin Atlantic founder Richard Branson. AFP
Virgin Atlantic founder Richard Branson. AFP

Richard Branson

It took £200 million (Dh937.4m) of Richard Branson’s own money to secure the rescue of his Virgin Atlantic Airways.

The outlay marks the latest example of the industry’s enduring capacity to shrink fortunes, although the British billionaire may not be surprised, having once said that “if you want to be a millionaire, start with a billion dollars and launch a new airline.”

The airline business has long proved irresistible to a cohort of larger-than-life tycoons. From AirAsia Group’s Tony Fernandes to JetBlue Airways’ founder David Neeleman, some of the world’s most celebrated entrepreneurs have built fortunes shuttling people through the sky.

But with air travel dwindling in lockdown, coronavirus has battered even those long hardened to the volatility and thin margins of the capital-intensive industry.

The market valuations of 10 large, publicly traded airlines linked to prominent magnates tracked by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index have declined in value by $14bn since the year began.

The crisis has already had several victims. Earlier this year, Warren Buffett closed a losing bet on four of the biggest US airlines, acknowledging that the investment had lost money for Berkshire Hathaway. It was his second about-turn after earlier swearing off the sector.

Latam Airlines Group, Latin America’s largest operator whose shareholders include Chile’s Cueto family, sought bankruptcy court protection in New York.

In March, Mr Neeleman — who founded JetBlue and Canada’s WestJet Airlines — unloaded more than 80 per cent of his preferred shares in Brazilian airline Azul after a margin call was triggered on a $30m personal loan.

The crisis has also brought structural issues or simmering tensions to the surface. Norwegian Air Shuttle’s debt load forced it into a restructuring. The discount airline, whose co-founder Bjorn Kos was a former fighter pilot who challenged companies such as British Airways on transatlantic routes, remains highly indebted and issued a warning that it will probably need to raise more capital.

European budget operator EasyJet, which is just emerging from a near-total grounding of its fleet, has also contended with internal strife. Its founder and largest shareholder Stelios Haji-Ioannou launched a failed attempt to oust the executive leadership and block the purchase of Airbus planes which he said EasyJet neither needed nor could afford.

It is possible that the industry may recover quickly enough to staunch some losses. There have been signs that travel demand has begun to look up, fuelling hopes that the stress on beleaguered airlines will ease.

But any return to business as usual is far off. Delta Air Lines revised plans to restore some service after a resurgence in US coronavirus cases undercut a nascent recovery in travel demand.

Even with the restructuring, Virgin Atlantic said it only expected to return to profitability from 2022.

BlackRock chief executive Larry Fink. Bloomberg
BlackRock chief executive Larry Fink. Bloomberg

Larry Fink

BlackRock chief executive Larry Fink sold $24.2m of stock in the world’s largest asset manager, bringing his sales this year to $74.4m.

Mr Fink disposed of 41,706 shares – about 5 per cent of his stake in the business – at an average price of $580.29 on July 21, according to a regulatory filing. The filings did not indicate that his sales this year were made under a pre-scheduled trading plan.

Mr Fink, who is a billionaire and still owns $457m of BlackRock stock, issued a warning this month about an uneven economic recovery despite rising investor confidence buoying second-quarter results at the New York money manager.

“For our economy to be fully operational again, it can’t be this bipolar economy,” the chief executive said. “There has been a lot of healing and that is what the market is reflecting, but there is still a great component of our economy that has not healed and is still struggling.”

Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha

Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar

Director: Neeraj Pandey

Rating: 2.5/5

GAC GS8 Specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh149,900

The specs

Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel

Power: 579hp

Torque: 859Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh825,900

On sale: Now

UK-EU trade at a glance

EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years

Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products

Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries

Smoother border management with use of e-gates

Cutting red tape on import and export of food

The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.3-litre%204cyl%20turbo%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E299hp%20at%205%2C500rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E420Nm%20at%202%2C750rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E10-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E12.4L%2F100km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh157%2C395%20(XLS)%3B%20Dh199%2C395%20(Limited)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
MATCH INFO

Karnataka Tuskers 110-5 (10 ovs)

Tharanga 48, Shafiq 34, Rampaul 2-16

Delhi Bulls 91-8 (10 ovs)

Mathews 31, Rimmington 3-28

Karnataka Tuskers win by 19 runs

Women’s World T20, Asia Qualifier

UAE results
Beat China by 16 runs
Lost to Thailand by 10 wickets
Beat Nepal by five runs
Beat Hong Kong by eight wickets
Beat Malaysia by 34 runs

Standings (P, W, l, NR, points)

1. Thailand 5 4 0 1 9
2. UAE 5 4 1 0 8
3. Nepal 5 2 1 2 6
4. Hong Kong 5 2 2 1 5
5. Malaysia 5 1 4 0 2
6. China 5 0 5 0 0

Final
Thailand v UAE, Monday, 7am

Global state-owned investor ranking by size

1.

United States

2.

China

3.

UAE

4.

Japan

5

Norway

6.

Canada

7.

Singapore

8.

Australia

9.

Saudi Arabia

10.

South Korea

Ferrari 12Cilindri specs

Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12

Power: 819hp

Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm

Price: From Dh1,700,000

Available: Now

Specs

Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request

AL%20BOOM
%3Cp%20style%3D%22text-align%3Ajustify%3B%22%3E%26nbsp%3B%26nbsp%3B%26nbsp%3BDirector%3AAssad%20Al%20Waslati%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%20style%3D%22text-align%3Ajustify%3B%22%3E%0DStarring%3A%20Omar%20Al%20Mulla%2C%20Badr%20Hakami%20and%20Rehab%20Al%20Attar%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EStreaming%20on%3A%20ADtv%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%203.5%2F5%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Profile Idealz

Company: Idealz

Founded: January 2018

Based: Dubai

Sector: E-commerce

Size: (employees): 22

Investors: Co-founders and Venture Partners (9 per cent)

Marathon results

Men:

 1. Titus Ekiru(KEN) 2:06:13 

2. Alphonce Simbu(TAN) 2:07:50 

3. Reuben Kipyego(KEN) 2:08:25 

4. Abel Kirui(KEN) 2:08:46 

5. Felix Kemutai(KEN) 2:10:48  

Women:

1. Judith Korir(KEN) 2:22:30 

2. Eunice Chumba(BHR) 2:26:01 

3. Immaculate Chemutai(UGA) 2:28:30 

4. Abebech Bekele(ETH) 2:29:43 

5. Aleksandra Morozova(RUS) 2:33:01  

Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company%20profile
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Our legal advisor

Ahmad El Sayed is Senior Associate at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.

Experience: Commercial litigator who has assisted clients with overseas judgments before UAE courts. His specialties are cases related to banking, real estate, shareholder disputes, company liquidations and criminal matters as well as employment related litigation. 

Education: Sagesse University, Beirut, Lebanon, in 2005.

The National's picks

4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young

What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

Victims%20of%20the%202018%20Parkland%20school%20shooting
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Meg%202%3A%20The%20Trench
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Dust and sand storms compared

Sand storm

  • Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
  • Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
  • Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
  • Travel distance: Limited 
  • Source: Open desert areas with strong winds

Dust storm

  • Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
  • Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
  • Duration: Can linger for days
  • Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
  • Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance: the specs

Engine: 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 plus rear-mounted electric motor

Power: 843hp at N/A rpm

Torque: 1470Nm N/A rpm

Transmission: 9-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 8.6L/100km

On sale: October to December

Price: From Dh875,000 (estimate)

The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

Pakistan Super League

Previous winners

2016 Islamabad United

2017 Peshawar Zalmi

2018 Islamabad United

2019 Quetta Gladiators

 

Most runs Kamran Akmal – 1,286

Most wickets Wahab Riaz –65