Category Archives: Investment Topics
GIC’s Russell Read, CFA, on the Alpha and Beta of Commodities Investing
Commodity strategies have a major and multidimensional role to play in a diversified portfolio — especially for investors in the MENA region. Read More
Islamic Finance Should Contribute More to Sustainable Economic Development: Volker Nienhaus
There is much potential for Islamic finance to promote sustainable economic development through such approaches as widening access to finance (including microfinance), financing infrastructure projects, and expanding the reach of takaful (Islamic insurance). Read More
An Important Report on Middle Eastern High-Net-Worth Individuals
At the Middle East Investment Conference, Khaled Sifri, CEO, Emirates Investment Bank provided unique transparency into Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) high-net-worth individuals. Read More
Modern Finance Is Seeing Historic Levels of Speculation
Not surprisingly, the 2008–2009 global financial crisis sent many financial professionals looking to history for a sense of appropriate context and perspective to understand the magnitude of such a catastrophic financial shock. This, in turn, sparked a general interest in financial history, but with few professional sources to turn to. At the 2014 Middle East Investment Conference, professor Adrian Bell, head of the ICMA Centre at the University of Reading’s Henley Business School considered the question of whether or not modern finance existed in the Middle Ages. Read More
Investment Professionals in MENA Expect Growth in 2014
Investment professionals in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) expect the local economies to grow and think that Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar present the best growth potential and investment opportunities in 2014. Read More
Khaled Sifri’s Insights into Regional Private Wealth and Investment Banking
According to Khaled Sifri of Emirates Investment Bank, MENA’s new private wealth client is an entrepreneur versed in company growth and attuned to investment banking deals. Read More
What Will Drive Economic Growth in the Middle East?
A panel at the Middle East Investment Conference will discuss the new MENA enterprises that could meet global consumer appetites while creating sustainable economic growth in their home countries. Read More
How the Middle Ages Handled “Too Big to Fail”
Adrian Bell’s research has found systemic risks and financial crises dating back to medieval Europe. Read More
Volker Nienhaus on Turning Islamic Banking into a Competitive Advantage
Volker Nienhaus sees Islamic law’s restrictions on interest-bearing instruments and speculative practices as an opportunity to establish a competitive advantage. Read More
Islamic Finance is Growing Fast but Faces the Form-Versus-Substance Debate
Ibrahim Warde, adjunct professor at Tufts University, argued that since the 1990s, Islamic finance has gained much more international acceptability but that it continues to grapple with the fundamental form-versus-substance debate. Read More
