Sulaiman al Fahim, the chairman of Portsmouth Football Club, has confirmed he is trying to sell his majority shareholding in the English Premier League team to a consortium funded by Saudi businessman Ali al Faraj, and headed by Peter Storrie, the club's executive officer.
Mr Al Fahim, recovering in a Dubai hospital following a successful operation to remove kidney stones, admitted discussions with Mr al Faraj - reported to own a significant holding in Saudi petrochemical firm Saudi Basic Industries Company - have been going on for weeks.
"Negotiations started weeks ago and we are now close to a lawyers agreement," he told The National. "I am travelling to London tomorrow (Monday) for a meeting."
Although seemingly ready to surrender control of the club, Mr al Fahim revealed he will retain a minority shareholding - a portfolio the Emirati businessman will look to add to should circumstances change in the future.
"I want to retain a minority holding and I'm seeking first refusal on any shares they might want to sell in the future," added Mr al Fahim, who confirmed the al Faraj-backed group is the same consortium who also bid for the club when he bought it in August.
Having suffered seven successive Premier League losses since Mr al Fahim became owner, Portsmouth's stock rose slightly this weekend after a 1-0 away win at Wolverhampton but they are still bottom of the division.
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Where to apply
Applicants should send their completed applications - CV, covering letter, sample(s) of your work, letter of recommendation - to Nick March, Assistant Editor in Chief at The National and UAE programme administrator for the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, by 5pm on April 30, 2020.
Please send applications to nmarch@thenational.ae and please mark the subject line as “Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism (UAE programme application)”.
The local advisory board will consider all applications and will interview a short list of candidates in Abu Dhabi in June 2020. Successful candidates will be informed before July 30, 2020.
How will Gen Alpha invest?
Mark Chahwan, co-founder and chief executive of robo-advisory firm Sarwa, forecasts that Generation Alpha (born between 2010 and 2024) will start investing in their teenage years and therefore benefit from compound interest.
“Technology and education should be the main drivers to make this happen, whether it’s investing in a few clicks or their schools/parents stepping up their personal finance education skills,” he adds.
Mr Chahwan says younger generations have a higher capacity to take on risk, but for some their appetite can be more cautious because they are investing for the first time. “Schools still do not teach personal finance and stock market investing, so a lot of the learning journey can feel daunting and intimidating,” he says.
He advises millennials to not always start with an aggressive portfolio even if they can afford to take risks. “We always advise to work your way up to your risk capacity, that way you experience volatility and get used to it. Given the higher risk capacity for the younger generations, stocks are a favourite,” says Mr Chahwan.
Highlighting the role technology has played in encouraging millennials and Gen Z to invest, he says: “They were often excluded, but with lower account minimums ... a customer with $1,000 [Dh3,672] in their account has their money working for them just as hard as the portfolio of a high get-worth individual.”
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
The%20specs
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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