London Technology Club has hosted its first event in the emirate, with 70 guests. Photo: LTC
London Technology Club has hosted its first event in the emirate, with 70 guests. Photo: LTC
London Technology Club has hosted its first event in the emirate, with 70 guests. Photo: LTC
London Technology Club has hosted its first event in the emirate, with 70 guests. Photo: LTC

Investor’s forum: London Technology Club opens first overseas investment hub in Dubai


Alice Haine
  • English
  • Arabic

London Technology Club, an exclusive community of wealthy investors, is opening its first overseas investment hub in Dubai as it looks to tap a growing membership base in the Middle East and North Africa region.

The networking club, which matches investment opportunities in the technology sector with high net worth investors, chose the emirate for its first international base after its UK members called for meetings to be held there.

“We already intended to expand and become a global forum and network but more and more members were asking us, what about Dubai? It was a natural step for us as our first international offering,” Simon Pavitt, chief operating officer of LTC, told The National.

Founded in 2018 by London-based entrepreneur and investor Konstantin Sidorov – one of the early investors in Spotify whose other notable exits include Airbnb and Lyft – the LTC is an exclusive community of family offices, private and institutional investors, venture capital firms, entrepreneurs and technology experts.

The Club offers co-investment, thought leadership and relationship-building opportunities in the tech sector, hosting two events a month and offering access to competitive VC funds with attractive returns.

“At the events, we present members with founders or investment opportunities and also share ideas around thought leadership and where we believe the world is heading from technology point of view,” Mr Pavitt said.

More than half of the 87 members in London are ultra high net worth or high net worth individuals, he said, while 15 members are VC firms and the rest are made up of institutional investors such as Barclays Wealth and UBS.

“We're a mixture. We're all about bringing together VCs, tech pioneers, influencers et cetera and then investors to talk investments,” Mr Pavitt said.

Simon Pavitt, chief operating officer of LTC, said choosing Dubai as the base for its first overseas hub was a natural fit for the company as many members spend their winters in the emirate. Photo: LTC
Simon Pavitt, chief operating officer of LTC, said choosing Dubai as the base for its first overseas hub was a natural fit for the company as many members spend their winters in the emirate. Photo: LTC

In London, individual membership costs £8,000, while a corporate partner or VC pays £15,000 and institutional investors are charged £25,000.

In Dubai, membership will be charged at the equivalent of Dh40,000, Dh70,000 and Dh125,000 respectively.

The decision to expand to Dubai was fuelled by its members, Mr Pavitt said.

“We noticed more of our members were spending more time in Dubai, whether that's setting up businesses, investing or moving their family over there,” he said.

“It almost became a bit of a running joke that when we talked about our Christmas party, asking our members where they would be for the winter, they all said Dubai.”

LTC will have a bricks and mortar office in Dubai through its partnership with venture capital firm and LTC member Global Ventures, with the Club looking to grow its membership base in the UAE and wider region by a calendar of events.

Its first Dubai event for 70 guests was hosted at restaurant The Maine in Business Bay during the World Blockchain Summit this month. There are other events planned for Dubai and Abu Dhabi this year.

The UAE is a “natural place for people to convene,” said Mr Pavitt, adding that there is “a huge buzz” in the country around technology and progress with the company eyeing up investment opportunities in mobility, AI, FinTech, cyber security, DeepTech, BioTech, FoodTech and impact investments.

“Dubai is definitely a focus for us going forward. There's been a few marquee signature companies that have been built out of the region – its path to build unicorns has become clear,” he said.

With more wealthy investors looking at growth stage technology companies as part of a mixed portfolio, Mr Pavitt said there is an increasing appetite in the region for tech investments.

Future locations for potential LTC hubs include Geneva, Zurich, Miami, Berlin or Singapore, but choosing Dubai first “is a testament to the region and to Dubai, as a city”, Mr Pavitt said.

LTC has a long record of targeted investments, listing Revolut, Klarna and ATAI Life Sciences among its members’ direct investment portfolio.

“A lot of our opportunities are relatively well known brands,” Mr Pavitt said.

“But we like to say that venture capital is an access class, not an asset class with the ability to unlock these opportunities the main problem for investors. That's what we help unlock.”

Noor Sweid, general partner at Global Ventures, said Dubai, “a city bustling with entrepreneurs”, along with the wider Mena region has “become a global hotspot for tech innovation".

“It is also a part of the world that continues to attract sophisticated investors who see it as an ideal place to settle with their businesses and families,” she added.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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  • The DMZ was created as a buffer after the 1950-53 Korean War.
  • It runs 248 kilometers across the Korean Peninsula and is 4km wide.
  • The zone is jointly overseen by the US-led United Nations Command and North Korea.
  • It is littered with an estimated 2 million mines, tank traps, razor wire fences and guard posts.
  • Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un met at a building in Panmunjom, where an armistice was signed to stop the Korean War.
  • Panmunjom is 52km north of the Korean capital Seoul and 147km south of Pyongyang, North Korea’s capital.
  • Former US president Bill Clinton visited Panmunjom in 1993, while Ronald Reagan visited the DMZ in 1983, George W. Bush in 2002 and Barack Obama visited a nearby military camp in 2012. 
  • Mr Trump planned to visit in November 2017, but heavy fog that prevented his helicopter from landing.
Three tips from La Perle's performers

1 The kind of water athletes drink is important. Gwilym Hooson, a 28-year-old British performer who is currently recovering from knee surgery, found that out when the company was still in Studio City, training for 12 hours a day. “The physio team was like: ‘Why is everyone getting cramps?’ And then they realised we had to add salt and sugar to the water,” he says.

2 A little chocolate is a good thing. “It’s emergency energy,” says Craig Paul Smith, La Perle’s head coach and former Cirque du Soleil performer, gesturing to an almost-empty open box of mini chocolate bars on his desk backstage.

3 Take chances, says Young, who has worked all over the world, including most recently at Dragone’s show in China. “Every time we go out of our comfort zone, we learn a lot about ourselves,” she says.

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Forewords by Jacqueline Bisset and Charlotte Rampling, ACC Art Books

The specs: 2018 BMW R nineT Scrambler

Price, base / as tested Dh57,000

Engine 1,170cc air/oil-cooled flat twin four-stroke engine

Transmission Six-speed gearbox

Power 110hp) @ 7,750rpm

Torque 116Nm @ 6,000rpm

Fuel economy, combined 5.3L / 100km

Friday’s fixture

6.15pm: Al Wahda v Hatta

6.15pm: Al Dhafra v Ajman

9pm: Al Wasl v Baniyas

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Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
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  2. Look beyond school fees
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Key facilities
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  • Premier League-standard football pitch
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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.”

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Sand storm

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  • 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
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AT4 Ultimate, as tested

Engine: 6.2-litre V8

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Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)

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Rugby World Cup (all times UAE)

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Sustainable Development Goals

1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere

2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture

3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all

8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation

10. Reduce inequality  within and among countries

11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its effects

14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development

15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss

16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development

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Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979

Education: UAE University, Al Ain

Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6

Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma

Favourite book: Science and geology

Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC

Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.

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Mia Man’s tips for fermentation

- Start with a simple recipe such as yogurt or sauerkraut

- Keep your hands and kitchen tools clean. Sanitize knives, cutting boards, tongs and storage jars with boiling water before you start.

- Mold is bad: the colour pink is a sign of mold. If yogurt turns pink as it ferments, you need to discard it and start again. For kraut, if you remove the top leaves and see any sign of mold, you should discard the batch.

- Always use clean, closed, airtight lids and containers such as mason jars when fermenting yogurt and kraut. Keep the lid closed to prevent insects and contaminants from getting in.

 

The alternatives

• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.

• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.

• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.

2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.

• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases -  but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.

Western Region Asia Cup Qualifier

Results

UAE beat Saudi Arabia by 12 runs

Kuwait beat Iran by eight wickets

Oman beat Maldives by 10 wickets

Bahrain beat Qatar by six wickets

Semi-finals

UAE v Qatar

Bahrain v Kuwait

 

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The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

Analysis

Maros Sefcovic is juggling multiple international trade agreement files, but his message was clear when he spoke to The National on Wednesday.

The EU-UAE bilateral trade deal will be finalised soon, he said. It is in everyone’s interests to do so. Both sides want to move quickly and are in alignment. He said the UAE is a very important partner for the EU. It’s full speed ahead - and with some lofty ambitions - on the road to a free trade agreement. 

We also talked about US-EU tariffs. He answered that both sides need to talk more and more often, but he is prepared to defend Europe's position and said diplomacy should be a guiding principle through the current moment. 

 

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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. 

Updated: March 30, 2022, 11:09 AM`