Pakistan cricket stars took bribes and betrayed sport, court told



LONDON // Three Pakistan cricket stars were accused of betraying themselves, their country and their sport by accepting bribes as part of a massive betting scam, a court in London heard yesterday.

The former captain Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer have already been suspended from all cricket by the Dubai-based International Cricket Council for accepting money to bowl deliberate "no balls" in a Test match against England at Lord's in August last year.

Butt, 26, and Asif, 28, were in the dock at Southwark Crown Court in south London yesterday as prosecutor Aftab Jafferjee opened the case, which he said represented "rampant corruption" at the heart of international cricket.

Both players have pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy to cheat and accepting corrupt payments in return for arranging to bowl "no balls" at specific stages of the match.

Mr Jafferjee told the jury that the men had been paid by UK-based sports agent Mazhar Majeed, 36, who has been charged with the same offences.

Knowledge of the exact moments the "no balls" were to be delivered would allow gambling syndicates to make millions on the "spot betting" market in Asia.

The sums of money involved in such gambling were "simply breathtaking", the prosecutor added, with an estimated US$40 billion (Dh146bn) being wagered in one year on the Indian subcontinent alone.

"Those involved in this plot lent themselves willingly and for financial gain, to fix not just the outcome of the match but, in particular, aspects within each match on a day-by-day basis, Mr Jafferjee said.

"There are, of course, vast amounts of money to be made in any betting activity if the results are known in advance, and all of that was at the expense of the integrity of the game."

Mr Jafferjee claimed that Mr Butt and Mr Majeed were central to organising the "spot fixing" scam but that the conspiracy could not have been carried out without the two fast bowlers, Mr Asif and Mr Aamer, who was 19 at the time.

"And by the time the last Test match at Lord's took place, each of them was well at it, the two bowlers being orchestrated by their captain and the captain's agent, Majeed, to bowl three 'no balls' at a pre-arranged point in the game," Mr Jafferjee said.

The prosecutor said that the scandal had only been exposed by an undercover investigation by the News of the World, the Sunday tabloid closed in the summer amid the furore over phone-hacking allegations.

"Were this investigation not to have been permitted, this activity of 'fixing' would almost certainly have continued, unabated, unaccountable, and beyond the reach of the law," Mr Jafferjee said.

He said that, after his arrest, Mr Butt had told police that it was just "a series of freakish occurrences" that the three no-balls had been delivered by Mr Asif and Mr Aamer at the precise moments when Mr Majeed had promised the News of the World reporter they would be.

The trial is expected to last up to five weeks.

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Remaining Fixtures

Wednesday: West Indies v Scotland
Thursday: UAE v Zimbabwe
Friday: Afghanistan v Ireland
Sunday: Final

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Age: 46

Number of Children: Four

Hobby: Reading history books

Loves: Sports

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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Emirate: Dubai

Hobbies: I enjoy travelling, experiencing new things, painting, reading, flying, and the French language

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The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning. 
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval. 
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
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Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
 
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Dialysis is a way of cleaning your blood when your kidneys fail and can no longer do the job.

It gets rid of your body's wastes, extra salt and water, and helps to control your blood pressure. The main cause of kidney failure is diabetes and hypertension.

There are two kinds of dialysis — haemodialysis and peritoneal.

In haemodialysis, blood is pumped out of your body to an artificial kidney machine that filter your blood and returns it to your body by tubes.

In peritoneal dialysis, the inside lining of your own belly acts as a natural filter. Wastes are taken out by means of a cleansing fluid which is washed in and out of your belly in cycles.

It isn’t an option for everyone but if eligible, can be done at home by the patient or caregiver. This, as opposed to home haemodialysis, is covered by insurance in the UAE.

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