The Weekly Circuit
👋 Hello from the Middle East!
In the Weekly Circuit today, we’re looking at Dubai’s stock rally led by Emaar, the launch of the UAE’s first drone-delivery service, ADIA’s sale of its interest in a Liverpool shopping center and Almoosa Health’s oversubscribed share sale. But first, another possible IPO for Abu Dhabi.
Add Infinity Power, an Africa-focused renewable energy startup backed by Egypt’s Infinity and Abu Dhabi’s Masdar, to the growing list of Gulf businesses considering an IPO.
Infinity CEO Mohammed Ismail expects to sell shares within the next two years on one of several exchanges, with Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Johannesburg, London and Cairo under consideration, he told Bloomberg in an interview published on Wednesday.
“If we’re going to list today, our preference would be Abu Dhabi,” Mansour said. “Maybe that changes in a year or two. It depends on how the markets evolve.”
The Middle East has become a global springboard for IPOs, raising more than $12 billion this year. The UAE continues to lead the region in terms of listing volumes, followed by Saudi Arabia and Oman.
Infinity Power, which is 49% owned by Masdar, would probably list 20-30% of its shares initially and is also looking “very seriously” at issuing green bonds, Ismail said. Masdar is the UAE’s biggest renewable company and is owned by Abu Dhabi National Oil Co., ADNOC, Abu Dhabi National Energy Co., TAQA, and the Mubadala sovereign wealth fund.
In London last week, Saudi Arabia concluded its yearlong quest to buy a chunk of Heathrow Airport, joining an ownership group that includes the sovereign wealth funds of Qatar and Singapore.
The Public Investment Fund will own a 15% stake in FGP TopCo, the holding company that controls Europe’s busiest airport, after the deal was finalized on Dec. 12. The Saudi fund bought into the airport at the same time that Paris-based private equity firm Ardian acquired a 22.6% stake in Heathrow , which has a market value of about 8.7 billion pounds, or $11 billion.
Editor’s Note: We will be off for two issues through the New Year holiday and back in your mailbox on Jan. 8. Kindly let us know your thoughts and feedback by replying to this newsletter or emailing us at [email protected].
CIRCUIT INTERVIEW
China’s Keeta drones launch in Dubai for airborne deliveries
The skies over Dubai are starting to buzz with drones operated by a Chinese company that is the first in the UAE licensed to deliver fast food, pharmaceuticals and other supplies to customers who order by app, The Circuit’s Omnia Al Desoukie reports.
Keeta Drone held a launch event on Tuesday that was attended by Dubai’s Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed. The prince, who is also the UAE’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, was so impressed that he immediately authorized a 33% expansion of Keeta’s coverage area.
In an interview with The Circuit, Keeta Drone President Yinian Mao talked about how the company managed to become the first drone delivery service in Dubai and plans to launch its autonomous six-propeller aircraft into markets across the Middle East.
property payout
Emaar leads Dubai rally with dividend boost for shareholders
Dubai’s property boom allowed Emaar, the city’s largest publicly traded developer, to provide shareholders with a big return. The move sent its stock soaring on Monday to a 17-year high, The Circuit reports.
The company, founded by Mohamed Alabbar, announced on Friday that it would declare dividends at 100% of its share capital starting with 2024 and continuing for the next few years.
Emaar said the new policy is aimed “at enhancing shareholder value while ensuring the financial sustainability and strategic growth” of the company.
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💲 Sovereign Circuit
Public Investment Fund: Saudi Arabia has extracted lithium from an Aramco oilfield’s brine and plans to launch commercial operations soon led by Lithium Infinity, a startup launched out of King Abdullah University for Science and Technology, PIF-backed mining company Ma’aden and Aramco, Reuters reports. Saudi Entertainment Ventures, or SEVEN, a company owned by the sovereign wealth fund, plans to develop a $346 million entertainment project in the kingdom’s Jazan region. Meanwhile, PIF-backed Saudi Global Ports has picked banks including Goldman Sachs and HSBC to help arrange a planned IPO in Riyadh that aims to raise up to $1 billion, Bloomberg reports.
Abu Dhabi Investment Authority: The sovereign wealth fund is looking at exiting its 9.2% stake in India’s Mindspace Business Park REIT – which has properties in the Mumbai region, Pune, Hyderabad and Chennai – through a block deal, CNBC-TV18 reports.
Qatar Investment Authority: The Qatari sovereign wealth fund’s CEO Mohammed Al Sowaidi joined with Minister of Economy and Commerce Sheikh Faisal Bin Thani in a meeting with Cambodian Senate President Samdech Techo Hun Sen last week in Doha.
Mubadala: Data-center startup Crusoe, a San Francisco-based AI data-center startup, raised $600 million in a Series D fundraising round led by the Founders Fund, with participation by Nvidia, Fidelity and Mubadala.
ADQ: Sotheby’s has laid off more than 100 employees as part of cost-cutting commitments made when the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund agreed to invest $1 billion for a minority stake in the auction house, The Art Newspaper reports.
↪↩ Closing Circuit
💰 Entrepreneur Support:Saudi Arabia’s Social Development Bank and the Saudi National Bank’s Ahalina program are launching a $2.7 million financing portfolio to support entrepreneurs in the Kingdom.
🔋 Making Batteries: China’s Gotion High-Tech announced plans to allocate close to $1.4 billion toward developing a lithium battery production facility in Morocco.
🏭 Factory Zone:China’s XinFeng steel company plans to build a $1.7 billion manufacturing complex in Egypt’s Sokhna Industrial Zone with nine factories that will make products ranging from automotive components to construction machinery.
🌬️ Wind Fund:The OPEC Fund has granted Egypt a $40 million loan to build two wind farms with a combined 1.1 GW capacity in the Gulf of Suez.
🔎 Spyware Acquisition: Paragon, an Israeli spyware startup that counts former Prime Minister Ehud Barak as an investor, is being acquired by Florida-based AE Industrial Partners for $500 million in a deal that could rise to $900 million if certain milestones are reached, Calcalist reports.
🗣 Circuit Chatter
💼 Legal Eagles:Top law firms from New York, London and Chicago, including Kirkland & Ellis and Linklaters, are deepening their presence in the Gulf, attracted by the rising level of billion-dollar deals and vast resources of the region’s sovereign wealth funds, Bloomberg reports.
💸 Europe-Bound: Competition is heating up between U.S. asset management firms such as Blackrock and Goldman Sachs for business in Europe and the Middle East, the Financial Times reports.
📈 Going Public:Egypt will hold IPOs for at least 10 state-owned companies next year, including Wataniya Co., Safi Co., Silo Food Co, and wind farm Gabal El Zeit, according to Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly.
🖥️ Chip Crackdown:The U.S. is preparing rules that would restrict the sale of advanced artificial intelligence chips in Southeast Asia and the Middle East in an attempt to limit China’s ability to access them, The Wall Street Journal reports.
💳 Digital Payments:Abu Dhabi Investment Office and Mastercard signed a partnership to launch a Digital Partnership Program aimed at improving government services through advanced payment technologies.
🌍 Power Circuit
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman chaired a Cabinet meeting in Riyadh on Tuesday, where the ministers celebrated winning the bid to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi met on Tuesday with Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Culture, Prince Badr bin Abdullah, who conveyed greetings from King Salman.
Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, inaugurated CMA Terminals Khalifa Port, an $845 million container terminal managed by a joint venture between CMA Terminals and Abu Dhabi Ports.
Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, UAE Deputy Prime Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Indian Foreign Affairs Minister Dr. Subramaniam Jaishankar presided together over the fourth Strategic Dialogue between the two countries in New Delhi on Thursday. He also received a phone call from Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Ruler of Sharjah, appointed Ali Ahmed Al Hosani as Director General of the Sharjah Private Education Authority.
➿ On the Circuit
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman chaired a Cabinet meeting in Riyadh on Tuesday, where the ministers celebrated winning the bid to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi met on Tuesday with Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Culture, Prince Badr bin Abdullah, who conveyed greetings from King Salman.
Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, inaugurated CMA Terminals Khalifa Port, an $845 million container terminal managed by a joint venture between CMA Terminals and Abu Dhabi Ports.
Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, UAE Deputy Prime Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Indian Foreign Affairs Minister Dr. Subramaniam Jaishankar presided together over the fourth Strategic Dialogue between the two countries in New Delhi on Thursday. He also received a phone call from Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Ruler of Sharjah, appointed Ali Ahmed Al Hosani as Director General of the Sharjah Private Education Authority.
🎶 Culture Circuit
🎞 Prize Winner: Tunisia’s “Red Path,” directed by Lotfi Achour, won the Golden Yusr award for best feature film at the concluding ceremony of the Red Sea Film Festival. Achour won the prize for best director. Among the stars joining the jury’s president, Spike Lee, at the Jeddah extravaganza on Thursday night were Sarah Jessica Parker, Dev Patel and Johnny Depp, whose film, “Modi – Three Days on the Wing of Madness,” was featured as the festival’s final gala screening.
📷 Photo of the Week
🗓️ Ahead on The Circuit
Dec. 15-26, Riyadh: Riyadh Theatre Festival. Featuring 20 performances aimed at reflecting the kingdom’s diversity in theatrical arts, with an awards ceremony on Dec. 26. Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University.
Dec. 16-20, Abu Dhabi. AIMS Conference. In its 14th edition, the conference highlights mathematical and scientific advancement with a focus on women scientists. ADNEC.
Jan. 7-9, Dubai. Arab Plast International Road Show. This event is a trade show for people working in plastic, petrochemicals and recycling materials. Dubai International Exhibition and Convention Center.
Jan. 7-9, Dubai. Dubai International Pharmaceuticals and Technologies Conference and Exhibition. The event brings people from the pharma chain to network, share knowledge and deal make. Dubai International Exhibition and Convention Center.
Jan. 7-10, Las Vegas, Nev. Consumer Electronics Show. One of the world’s biggest stages for the consumer electronics consumer and the entire tech industry. Las Vegas Convention Center.
Jan. 9-13, Abu Dhabi. International Renewable Energy Youth Forum. Held on the sidelines of IRENA’s Energy Forum. Masdar City.
Jan. 11-13, Abu Dhabi. International Renewable Energy Forum. The Assembly is the Agency’s ultimate decision-making authority where Heads of State/Government, Ministers and global stakeholders meet to discuss and advance the energy transition. Masdar City.
Jan. 11-13, Dubai. The 1bn Followers Summit. This event covers the world’s top creators and entertainers. Jumeirah Emirates Towers.
Jan. 13-18, Abu Dhabi. Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week. The conference brings together renewable energy companies, policymakers and environmental advocates to discuss key climate challenges. ADNEC.
Jan. 16-19, Dubai. Hero Dubai Desert Classic. Golf Tournament bringing in world class athletes. Emirates Golf Club.
Jan. 20-24, Davos, Switzerland. World Economic Forum. Annual WEF meeting bringing world leaders, business leaders and thought leaders under one roof to discuss the world’s challenges. Davos-Klosters.
Jan. 27-30, Dubai. Arab Health. Premier healthcare event where attendees can network with global leaders, discover ground-breaking innovations, and shape the future of healthcare. Dubai World Trade Center.
Feb. 3-6, Dubai. Medlab Middle East 2025. The show attracts exhibitors whether global giants or emerging startups to discuss digital health solutions. Dubai World Trade Centre.
Feb. 9-12, Riyadh. Leap 2025. Riyadh’s tech event brings in tech innovators and leading experts from around the world to discover new ideas, build new partnerships, and connect with inspiring mentors and investors. Riyadh Front Expo Centre.
Feb. 11-13, Dubai: World Government Summit 2025. This annual event brings together world leaders and business leaders from the region and beyond to discuss the most pressing matters. Madinat Jumeirah.
Feb. 14-16, Munich Security Forum. The event is known as the world’s leading forum for debating international security policy. Hotel Bayerischer Hof.
Feb. 22-23, Miami, Fla. FII Priority. A spinoff of Saudi Arabia’s Future Investment Initiative that aims to highlight disruptive technologies and connect U.S. and Middle Eastern investors. Faena Hotel & Forum, Miami Beach.
