The Daily Circuit
👋 Hello from the Middle East!
Today in The Daily Circuit, we’re looking at rising import prices for Red Sea cargo, the Qatar Investment Authority’s new $1 billion fund of funds, a jolt to the Egyptian bond market and the new AI bot attending Board meetings at Abu Dhabi’s IHC. But first, Hub71 brings the A-List to the UAE.
It wasn’t until this morning that Hub71, the bustling startup accelerator in Abu Dhabi, staged a celebrity reveal for its showcase Impact event. Splashing the news on social media, Hub71 announced that comedian Trevor Noah would appear onstage fresh from his appearance at Web Summit in Qatar on Monday. The annual Hub71 conference highlights emerging tech companies in the UAE ecosystem and provides opportunities for startup leaders to rub shoulders with investors.
Besides Noah and Idris Elba, the British actor, DJ and investor who was interviewed onstage by The Circuit’s Kelsey Warner, speakers at the two-day conference included Badr Al-Olama, Director General of the Abu Dhabi Investment Office; Ahmad Ali Alwan, CEO of Hub71; Eddy Farhat, Executive Director of e& Capital, and Nadine Mezher, Co-founder of the Sarwa investment platform.
Joe Kawkabani, CEO of OSN Group and Elie Habib, Co-founder of Anghami, also spoke to Warner onstage, the first public appearance for the media executives since announcing their merger in November.
More investors, corporate executives and government leaders will appear on Wednesday at the UAE’s Investopia conference on Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Island. Among the keynotes will be UAE Minister of the Economy Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, Mubadala CEO Khaldoon Al Mubarak; Anthony Scaramucci, Founder and Managing Partner of SkyBridge and Eric Cantor, the former U.S. House Majority Leader and Vice Chairman of Moelis.
📰 Developing Stories
BOARD BOT
International Holding Company, the Abu Dhabi-owned industrial conglomerate, announced that it has created a new post on its Board of Directors for an “Artificial Intelligence Observer.” The virtual entity was developed by G42, the holding company’s fast-growing AI firm, in collaboration with Microsoft, and given the name “Aiden Insight.” It will use its abilities “to continuously process and instantly analyze decades of business data, financial information, market trends, and global economic indicators,” the company said. IHC Chairman Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan said appointing Aiden Insight to the Board shows the company’s “commitment to innovation and forward-thinking leadership.”
SHIPPING PREMIUM
Prices for goods imported by container ships have risen more than 300% in the U.K. because of attacks on vessels in the Red Sea, with delays in delivery stretching up to a month, according to a survey of 1,000 companies by the British Chambers of Commerce. Retailers are appealing to the government for help, reporting supply shortages and cash flow problems. The average cost of shipping goods from China to Europe has more than doubled, with most ships preferring to travel around Africa rather than risk attack by approaching the Suez Canal, according to the UN Conference on Trade and Development.
💲 Sovereign Circuit
Qatar Investment Authority: The QIA is creating a $1 billion fund of funds to invest in tech startups through international and regional venture capital funds.
Public Investment Fund: Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund has hired Goldman Sachs, HSBC and Standard Chartered as joint global coordinators to arrange investor meetings starting on Monday to sell Islamic sukuk bonds, its second offering this year, Reuters reports.
ADQ: Egypt’s dollar-denominated bonds rose by record margins and its currency strengthened on the black market as the $35 billion investment deal it signed with the UAE’s ADQ sovereign wealth fund provided hope that the government will manage to weather its financial crisis.
🗣 Circuit Chatter
⛏️ Gold Rush: Saudi mining company Ma’aden plans to increase gold exploration after CEO Bob Wilt said a find in the Mecca region could set off “the world’s next gold rush.”
⚓ Sustainable Ports: UAE-based DP World and Masdar renewable energy company agreed to set up solar and energy storage systems in the region’s seaports, starting with Saudi Arabia, Senegal, and Egypt.
👟 Just Doing It: Adidas plans to open 100 stores in Saudi Arabia by next year and sign commercial partnerships with the Saudi Arabia Football Federation and Saudi Pro League.
↪↩ Closing Circuit
🚗 Parking Lots: The Dubai government will sell a 25% stake in Parkin, the company set up to manage municipal parking operations in an IPO planned for March 21.
🩺 Hospital Bonds: Middle East Healthcare Co., which runs Saudi Arabia’s German Hospital, concluded its $267 million offering of Islamic sukuk bonds that will be traded on the Tadawul Exchange in Riyadh.
💰 Venture Platform: Dubai’s Cotu Ventures said it will launch a $54 million fund to invest in early stage startups across the Middle East and North Africa. Cotu’s limited partners include Mubadala, Lunate, the Dubai Future District Fund and Arab Bank.
💼 Personnel Management: Workday, which helps companies manage human resources functions, announced its intent to acquire Israeli HR startup HiredScore for an undisclosed price.
🐙 Octopus Target: Codefresh, an Israeli-U.S. software integration startup, was acquired by Australia’s Octopus Deploy for a reported $40-$50 million, Calcalist reports.
🌍 Power Circuit
Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani begins a state visit in Paris today with French President Emmanuel Macron.
Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed, the UAE Finance Minister and First Deputy Ruler of Dubai, hailed the importance of training young government officials for future senior posts in an address to mark the completion by 10 ministry officials of the “Second-Line Leaders Edge Program,” designed by the University of Arizona’s Eller Executive Education Center.
➿ On the Circuit
WTO Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala told trade ministers meeting in Abu Dhabi on Monday that global trade is unlikely to reach the organization’s 3.3% growth forecast because of geopolitical tensions.
James Humfrey was appointed by Xlinks as CEO of the $25 billion Morocco-UK Power Project, which is building an undersea cable to bring solar and wind-generated electricity to Britain’s power grid.
🎶 Culture Circuit
😂 Just for Laughs: Aziz Ansari and Tom Segura will headline the inaugural Abu Dhabi Comedy Week, to be held from May 18-26 at Etihad Arena. Tickets go on sale on Thursday.
📷 Photo of the day
📅 Circuit Calendar
Feb. 25-27, AlUla, Saudi Arabia: AlUla Future Culture Summit. Conference on art and culture in Saudi Arabia. Daimuma Cultural Oasis.
Feb. 26-27, Abu Dhabi UAE: Hub71 Impact. Founders, investors and government discuss the impact of the UAE startup ecosystem. Abu Dhabi Global Market North Pavilion.
Feb. 26-29, Doha, Qatar: Web Summit Qatar. A Middle East edition of the technology crowd mega-event, gathering investors, entrepreneurs and business leaders. Doha Exhibition and Convention Centre.
Feb. 28-29, Abu Dhabi, UAE: Investopia. A gathering of investors hosted by SALT and Investopia, an investment platform launched by the UAE Ministry of Economy and backed by Mubadala and the Department of Economic Development. St. Regis Saadiyat.
Feb. 29-March 2, Sakhir, Bahrain: Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix. Bahrain International Circuit.
March 1, Abu Dhabi, UAE: Abu Dhabi Family Office Summit. One of the largest meetings in the region for family office leaders and investors. Saadiyat Rotana.
March 4-7, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: LEAP. A global technology conference for developers, startups, investors, C-suite and media. King Abdul Aziz International Conference Center.
March 5-6, Doha, Qatar: International LNG Forum. Gathering of industry leaders and key stakeholders to discuss the future of gas in a key export market. InterContinental Doha Beach.
March 5-6, Jerusalem, Israel. Life Science & Health-Tech Week in Israel. Healthtech company executives, investors, and government leaders join the annual conference. International Conference Center.
March 7, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia: Bloomberg Power Players Jeddah. Investor conference focusing on the impact of money on professional sports. Jeddah Yacht Club.March 7-9, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia: Formula 1 STC Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. The Jeddah Corniche Circuit.
