This month, Dubai & Co. has been featured in two major media outlets: the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and Fox Business. The articles touch on significant trends in global business in which the Gulf region is playing a central role: the increased commitment of multinationals into the Middle East and the role of sovereign wealth funds in international private equity.
The WSJ piece, entitled “Mideast Boom Lifts GE, Other Firms” notes that, last year, GE’s revenue from the Middle East region exceeded its China revenue by a 35% and was more that twice the revenue generated from India. The piece, which quotes both Jeffrey Immelt and GE regional head Nabil Hebayeb, discusses GE’s $50m research facility in Qatar (a case study of which is found in Dubai & Co.). Hebayeb notes that GE seeks to earn profits “in the country, not just from the country” — a spirit of collaboration which is refreshing and well-received (as well as often overlooked) in the region. The article, written by Kathryn Kranhold, is available here to WSJ subscribers.
The Fox Business piece relates to an upcoming event in Dubai on sovereign wealth funds and global private equity. The piece includes an estimate, provided by the firm Private Equity Intelligence, that sovereign funds control $3 trillion in wealth, 40% of which is held by Middle East entities. The piece also quotes Abdul Aziz Yaqoob Al Serkal of M’Sharie, Dubai Investments’ private equity arm. My own quote relates to the increased market power of sovereign investors, and how their approach to PE investment — even when investing in the debt component of transactions — can be fundamentally different from the approach customarily taken by banks. The full piece is available here.