Leaders of the Group of Seven nations meeting in Italy on Thursday agreed in principle to a $50 billion loan for Ukraine backed by frozen Russian assets, ordering officials at finance ministries to finalise the details in weeks.
Increasing support for war-torn Ukraine through the use of Russian frozen assets was a priority at the two-day G7 summit.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy joined the G7 leaders for a special session on Thursday at the luxury Borgo Egnazia hotel resort on the Adriatic Sea.
“We have political agreement at the highest levels for this deal,” a senior US official said. “And it is $50 billion this year that will be committed to Ukraine.”
US President Joe Biden and Mr Zelenskyy also signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement on Thursday, aimed at bolstering Ukraine's defence against Russian invaders.
"Our goal is to strengthen Ukraine's credible defence and deterrence capabilities for the long term," Mr Biden said.
The EU's 27 countries in March adopted a plan to channel most windfall profits from frozen assets, mostly held in Belgium, towards a fund for military aid to Ukraine.
Profits are estimated at €3 billion ($3.24 billion) a year.
But Washington has been pushing the G7 to make more money available faster for Kyiv, European Council President Charles Michel said a few hours before the deal's confirmation.
The agreement on the loan, expected to be released to Ukraine by the end of the year, has raised questions about what would happen if the seized Russian state assets were released or did not generate as much profit as expected.
European diplomats have said the exact mechanism to guarantee these loans still needs work.
"All G7 are contributing to this loan. It is the windfall profits from the Russian immobilised assets in Europe that will serve it," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.
"The finance ministers are now going through the details – for example, the topic of backstops that are necessary – and will clarify this as soon as possible."
The US official said Washington was willing to provide the entire $50 billion but said its contribution could be “significantly less” as it would be a shared initiative.
“We will not be the only lenders. This will be a loan syndicate. We're going to share the risk, because we have a shared commitment to get this done,” the official said.
But he would not say how much or even if the other G7 countries would contribute.
The US-Ukraine security pact includes a commitment by the US to work with Congress on a source of sustainable funding for the future.
Text of the agreement released by the White House also describes how the US will co-ordinate with Ukraine and other allies to make sure Ukraine has the military, intelligence and other means necessary to defend itself and deter Russian aggression.
The US and Ukraine would also consult “at the highest levels” in the event of a future armed attack by Russia against Ukraine.
New sanctions on Moscow
G7 countries increased pressure on Moscow this week, with the US on Wednesday expanding its sanctions on financial institutions considered to be supporting Russia's war economy.
The US also restricted the Russian military industrial base's ability to exploit certain US software and information technology services.
The UK followed with similar sanctions on Thursday, including taking aim at Moscow's main stock exchange.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the UK “will always stand shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine in its fight for freedom”.
Among the new UK measures are its first sanctions on vessels in Russian President Vladimir Putin's so-called shadow fleet, used by the Kremlin to circumvent western curbs on its oil exports.
Sanctions are also aimed at suppliers of munitions, machine tools, microelectronics and logistics to Russia's military, Downing Street said.
Those suppliers include entities in China, Israel, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey, along with ships that carry military goods from North Korea to Russia.
G7 leaders also expressed their support of a US plan for a ceasefire in Gaza and said they were concerned about an escalation of tension at the Lebanese-Israeli border.
Meetings will be widened to some non-G7 leaders on the second day of the summit.
Guests including Pope Francis, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will discuss artificial intelligence, energy and relations between Africa and the Mediterranean region.
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.”
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
VEZEETA PROFILE
Date started: 2012
Founder: Amir Barsoum
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
Size: 300 employees
Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)
Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC
So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?
Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
Mountain Classification Tour de France after Stage 8 on Saturday:
- 1. Lilian Calmejane (France / Direct Energie) 11
- 2. Fabio Aru (Italy / Astana) 10
- 3. Daniel Martin (Ireland / Quick-Step) 8
- 4. Robert Gesink (Netherlands / LottoNL) 8
- 5. Warren Barguil (France / Sunweb) 7
- 6. Chris Froome (Britain / Team Sky) 6
- 7. Guillaume Martin (France / Wanty) 6
- 8. Jan Bakelants (Belgium / AG2R) 5
- 9. Serge Pauwels (Belgium / Dimension Data) 5
- 10. Richie Porte (Australia / BMC Racing) 4
The fake news generation
288,000 – the number of posts reported as hate speech that were deleted by Facebook globally each month in May and June this year
11% – the number of Americans who said they trusted the news they read on Snapchat as of June 2017, according to Statista. Over a quarter stated that they ‘rarely trusted’ the news they read on social media in general
31% - the number of young people in the US aged between 10 and 18 who said they had shared a news story online in the last six months that they later found out was wrong or inaccurate
63% - percentage of Arab nationals who said they get their news from social media every single day.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).
Second leg
Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm
Games on BeIN Sports
List of alleged parties
May 12, 2020: PM and his wife Carrie attend 'work meeting' with at least 17 staff
May 20, 2020: They attend 'bring your own booze party'
Nov 27, 2020: PM gives speech at leaving party for his staff
Dec 10, 2020: Staff party held by then-education secretary Gavin Williamson
Dec 13, 2020: PM and his wife throw a party
Dec 14, 2020: London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey holds staff event at Conservative Party headquarters
Dec 15, 2020: PM takes part in a staff quiz
Dec 18, 2020: Downing Street Christmas party
Crops that could be introduced to the UAE
1: Quinoa
2. Bathua
3. Amaranth
4. Pearl and finger millet
5. Sorghum
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
Five personal finance podcasts from The National
To help you get started, tune into these Pocketful of Dirham episodes
·
Balance is essential to happiness, health and wealth
·
What is a portfolio stress test?
·
What are NFTs and why are auction houses interested?
·
How gamers are getting rich by earning cryptocurrencies
·
Should you buy or rent a home in the UAE?
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Envi%20Lodges%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeptember%202021%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Noelle%20Homsy%20and%20Chris%20Nader%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hospitality%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2012%20to%2015%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStage%20of%20investment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
