Anuscha Iqbal is the chief executive of Spotii, a buy-now-pay-later platform that went live in April and offers deferred payment schemes on online and offline purchases for UAE shoppers. Ms Iqbal, from Pakistan, worked as an investment banking analyst in New York before arriving in the UAE in 2007 to work as an analyst with a private equity firm. Ms Iqbal, 37, lives in Victory Heights, Dubai, with her husband and two children.
How did your upbringing shape your attitude to finance?
Savings are very important to my husband and me. A large part of that was influenced by my upbringing. Growing up in Pakistan, my parents were business owners. I saw them go through good and rough times where finances were a problem. That stuck with me. If I can save for a rainy day, I do. We budget to make sure we have a certain amount of spend but we are always building on our savings. All of that is then put into some sort of liquid, low-yielding, fixed-income investment. At the start of my career, I also saw the 2008-09 financial crisis. There was so much uncertainty. Having witnessed that volatility twice in my life, I have now made savings a big component of how I manage my budget.
I am always looking for a good deal and trying not to overstretch myself
How much were you paid in your first job?
When I was in university in Philadelphia, I had two to three odd jobs. I rotated between being a teaching assistant, manning the library desk and attending the game room. The pay for the library job was around $7 (Dh25.7) to $8 an hour. It was more than enough for a good meal back in college.
What brought you to the UAE?
Living in the US was very far from Pakistan. I wanted to be closer to home. The UAE offers that cultural affinity. When I arrived here in 2007, there were phenomenal opportunities for career growth as well. As time evolved, we settled here and the UAE is our home now.
What has been your best investment so far?
In 2009, when local bonds were tracking down quite significantly, I bought distressed real estate debt. Given the property market’s relevance to the economy, I knew the state would step in at some point to support these businesses and the bonds would rally. I bought them for a very significant discount. They rallied later and I held on to them for four years. It involved reading the overall situation, understanding consumer sentiment and having a long-term view.
What is your most cherished purchase?
Our current home. We bought it in 2014 and have a lot of memories here. I cherish it more from a sentimental perspective. From an investment perspective, it has not been the best purchase given where real estate prices are today.
What luxuries are important to you?
The ability to travel is important to me. I like new experiences and taking my children to see different parts of the world so that they are exposed to different cultures.
Are you a saver or a spender?
I am definitely a saver. I am always looking for a good deal and trying not to overstretch myself.
How has the pandemic affected your personal financial strategy?
When you are launching a business, you know no income is going to come in for a long time. While we were previously a double-income household, we are a single-income family now. My husband is a director at JP Morgan. Even pre-Covid, the fact that we were about to launch a business meant that we had to manage our finances better. Then Covid-19 struck and that brought on a wave of uncertainty. We were closely monitoring our budgets to see where we could cut our spending, if needed.
What led you to launch Spotii?
It was a host of factors. I had a personal desire to build a business and do something different. There was also the belief in the business model that we would be adding value to the UAE’s e-commerce ecosystem. It was at an inflection point, sort of where the US was 20 years ago. There was a big shift happening. The prospect of challenging myself to build something and grow it was both exciting and scary. There was the big fear of 'what if you fail' and I had to push that thought away. I have a good partner, my brother Ziyaad Ahmed, who is also the co-founder of Spotii. I wouldn’t have gone ahead with Spotii if I didn’t have his support.
Does Spotii's buy-now-pay-later concept encourage consumers to purchase items they cannot afford?
No, Spotii is about responsible spending. We want people to look to Spotii as a way to budget their money.
How has Covid-19 affected your business?
It’s hard to find a silver lining in such a market. But the acceleration to online in the UAE market has been good for our business. From a consumer perspective, we had first-time users shopping online and who are likely to continue doing so after the pandemic. We have a lot of merchants who weren’t so focused on being online earlier who have now accelerated their digital strategy. From a business perspective, Covid-19 has helped grow our company faster than originally planned.
How are you saving for your retirement?
Our first priority is to create a fund with enough money for our children’s education. We want to create a buffer not just for their schooling in the UAE but also for college. We haven’t honestly been thinking about retirement per se. Both of us are still quite young and have several years ahead of us. I will turn 38 this year. Once we get the children sorted, then we will figure ourselves out.
Do you have any financial regrets?
I have had a few bad investments. Both my husband and I share the same values in terms of making sure that we save appropriately. That has given us peace of mind that if anything goes wrong, we have a fallback option.
What financial advice would you give your younger self?
So many things. There were probably a lot of opportunities that I did not capitalise on. I would tell my younger self to not be too scared to take a few risks with my investment strategies. It’s easier to say that in hindsight. Ten years on, I know the impact of the financial crisis on my personal finances. Sitting in 2008, if I were to tell myself to take more risks, I would have said: ‘hell no’.
BABYLON
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Guns N’ Roses’s last gig before Abu Dhabi was in Hong Kong on November 21. We were there – and here’s what they played, and in what order. You were warned.
- It’s So Easy
- Mr Brownstone
- Chinese Democracy
- Welcome to the Jungle
- Double Talkin’ Jive
- Better
- Estranged
- Live and Let Die (Wings cover)
- Slither (Velvet Revolver cover)
- Rocket Queen
- You Could Be Mine
- Shadow of Your Love
- Attitude (Misfits cover)
- Civil War
- Coma
- Love Theme from The Godfather (movie cover)
- Sweet Child O’ Mine
- Wichita Lineman (Jimmy Webb cover)
- Wish You Were Here (instrumental Pink Floyd cover)
- November Rain
- Black Hole Sun (Soundgarden cover)
- Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door (Bob Dylan cover)
- Nightrain
Encore:
- Patience
- Don’t Cry
- The Seeker (The Who cover)
- Paradise City
New Zealand squad
Tim Southee (capt), Trent Boult (games 4 and 5), Colin de Grandhomme, Lockie Ferguson (games 1-3), Martin Guptill, Scott Kuggeleijn, Daryl Mitchell, Colin Munro, Jimmy Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi, Ross Taylor, Blair Tickner
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Zayed Sustainability Prize
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.
The biog
Age: 59
From: Giza Governorate, Egypt
Family: A daughter, two sons and wife
Favourite tree: Ghaf
Runner up favourite tree: Frankincense
Favourite place on Sir Bani Yas Island: “I love all of Sir Bani Yas. Every spot of Sir Bani Yas, I love it.”
Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
- Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
WWE Evolution results
- Trish Stratus and Lita beat Alicia Fox and Mickie James in a tag match
- Nia Jax won a battle royal, eliminating Ember Moon last to win
- Toni Storm beat Io Shirai to win the Mae Young Classic
- Natalya, Sasha Banks and Bayley beat The Riott Squad in a six-woman tag match
- Shayna Baszler won the NXT Women’s title by defeating Kairi Sane
- Becky Lynch retained the SmackDown Women’s Championship against Charlotte Flair in a Last Woman Standing match
- Ronda Rousey retained the Raw Women’s title by beating Nikki Bella
The%20specs
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specS: 2018 Toyota Camry
Price: base / as tested: Dh91,000 / Dh114,000
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 298hp @ 6,600rpm
Torque: 356Nm @ 4,700rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
How%20champions%20are%20made
%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3EDiet%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%0D%3Cbr%3E7am%20-%20Protein%20shake%20with%20oats%20and%20fruits%0D%3Cbr%3E10am%20-%205-6%20egg%20whites%0D%3Cbr%3E1pm%20-%20White%20rice%20or%20chapati%20(Indian%20bread)%20with%20chicken%0D%3Cbr%3E4pm%20-%20Dry%20fruits%20%0D%3Cbr%3E7.30pm%20-%20Pre%20workout%20meal%20%E2%80%93%20grilled%20fish%20or%20chicken%20with%20veggies%20and%20fruits%0D%3Cbr%3E8.30pm%20to%20midnight%20workout%0D%3Cbr%3E12.30am%20%E2%80%93%20Protein%20shake%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20intake%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204000-4500%20calories%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESaidu%E2%80%99s%20weight%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20110%20kg%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStats%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Biceps%2019%20inches.%20Forearms%2018%20inches%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ballon d’Or shortlists
Men
Sadio Mane (Senegal/Liverpool), Sergio Aguero (Aregentina/Manchester City), Frenkie de Jong (Netherlans/Barcelona), Hugo Lloris (France/Tottenham), Dusan Tadic (Serbia/Ajax), Kylian Mbappe (France/PSG), Trent Alexander-Arnold (England/Liverpool), Donny van de Beek (Netherlands/Ajax), Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon/Arsenal), Marc-Andre ter Stegen (Germany/Barcelona), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal/Juventus), Alisson (Brazil/Liverpool), Matthijs de Ligt (Netherlands/Juventus), Karim Benzema (France/Real Madrid), Georginio Wijnaldum (Netherlands/Liverpool), Virgil van Dijk (Netherlands/Liverpool), Bernardo Silva (Portugal/Manchester City), Son Heung-min (South Korea/Tottenham), Robert Lewandowski (Poland/Bayern Munich), Roberto Firmino (Brazil/Liverpool), Lionel Messi (Argentina/Barcelona), Riyad Mahrez (Algeria/Manchester City), Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium/Manchester City), Kalidou Koulibaly (Senegal/Napoli), Antoine Griezmann (France/Barcelona), Mohamed Salah (Egypt/Liverpool), Eden Hazard (BEL/Real Madrid), Marquinhos (Brazil/Paris-SG), Raheem Sterling (Eengland/Manchester City), Joao Félix(Portugal/Atletico Madrid)
Women
Sam Kerr (Austria/Chelsea), Ellen White (England/Manchester City), Nilla Fischer (Sweden/Linkopings), Amandine Henry (France/Lyon), Lucy Bronze(England/Lyon), Alex Morgan (USA/Orlando Pride), Vivianne Miedema (Netherlands/Arsenal), Dzsenifer Marozsan (Germany/Lyon), Pernille Harder (Denmark/Wolfsburg), Sarah Bouhaddi (France/Lyon), Megan Rapinoe (USA/Reign FC), Lieke Martens (Netherlands/Barcelona), Sari van Veenendal (Netherlands/Atletico Madrid), Wendie Renard (France/Lyon), Rose Lavelle(USA/Washington Spirit), Marta (Brazil/Orlando Pride), Ada Hegerberg (Norway/Lyon), Kosovare Asllani (Sweden/CD Tacon), Sofia Jakobsson (Sweden/CD Tacon), Tobin Heath (USA/Portland Thorns)
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
