Dubai Holding eyes real estate trust amid city’s property boom

Dubai’s ruler, Sheikh Mohamed bin Rashid, sees a grand opportunity as head of Dubai Holding Co. to capitalize on the city’s real estate boom.

The emirate’s government-owned conglomerate is in the early planning stages of creating a real estate investment trust, recruiting Citigroup, HSBC and Emirates NBD to manage a potential offering, Bloomberg reports. The company and banks declined to comment or didn’t respond.

In the UAE capital, meanwhile, institutional U.S. commercial real estate is fast becoming a game of “six degrees of Abu Dhabi,” The Promote reports, citing Mubadala’s $3 billion takeover of New York-based Fortress Investment Group in May, which has now received a regulatory go-ahead.

An emerging figure in Abu Dhabi real estate is Nick Candy, co-owner with his brother of London’s One Hyde Park development. Now Candy is focusing on the Middle East and promising to scale the heights of luxury in the UAE, Bloomberg reports.

Candy Capital has formed a joint venture with Abu Dhabi-based Modon Holding and plans to build a series of projects in the Middle East and North Africa, focusing on homes but also including hotels and offices, the news agency said.

Candy Capital has formed a joint venture with Abu Dhabi-based Modon Holding and plans to build a series of projects in the Middle East and North Africa, focusing on homes but also including hotels and offices, the news agency said.

Dubai’s Crown Prince joins UAE cabinet as Defense Minister

UAE residents woke up Sunday morning to a big cabinet reshuffle in the federal government.

Following approval from President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Vice President and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid announced the new cabinet, appointing his son Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, marking his first roles in the national government.

Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed was also named a Deputy Prime Minister.

In recent years, Sheikh Hamdan, often referred to as “Fazza” – he can be found @Faz3 on Instagram, where he has over 16 million followers – has taken on a more public role in the running of the emirate of Dubai, where his father is ruler.

A newly created post of Minister of State for Entrepreneurship has gone to Alia Abdullah Al Mazrouei, herself an entrepreneur and CEO of the Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, according to her Linkedin profile.