Two of Kuwait’s biggest banks are exploring a merger that would create an Islamic lender with more than $50 billion in assets.

The proposed tie-up comes amid a wave of banking consolidation across the Middle East, partly driven by competition for financing large-scale projects as Gulf countries rapidly diversify away from oil. 

Boubyan Bank, with assets worth $29 billion and Gulf Bank, with assets worth $24 billion, will conduct due diligence and valuation studies into the potential deal, the two lenders said in a statement.

The move comes as Kuwait Finance House weighs taking a large stake in Saudi Investment Bank, while National Bank of Bahrain considers a potential merger with Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait.

Consolidation of financial institutions in the GCC is being driven by the need to create lenders with greater scale as countries seek financing for mega-projects and other diversification activities aimed at boosting the non-oil economy.

These capital intensive activities, and the development and diversification of funding channels are expected to drive the GCC’s debt capital market to reach $1 trillion outstanding by next year, according to a new report from Fitch. 

Saudi Arabia, which is contending with lower oil profits and mounting expenses associated with its Vision 2030 transformation plans, held a 43% share of the $940 billion outstanding government debt in the GCC at the end of Q1 2024, while the UAE held 30%.

Around 40% of outstanding government debt was sukuk – bonds compliant with Islamic sharia law – while the rest was in conventional bonds, Fitch said.

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) sukuk, meanwhile, reached $18 billion outstanding in GCC countries, driven by increasing sustainability commitments, according to Fitch.

Forget the early days of Tang and squeeze-tube turkey or freeze-dried spaghetti and meatballs on the International Space Station.

Travelers aboard SpaceVIP’s Neptune capsule who pay $495,000 for the journey to Earth’s stratosphere will be treated to a menu prepared by innovative Danish chef Rasmus Munk, Arabian Business reports.

With the maiden six-hour flight scheduled for the second half of 2025, SpaceVIP founder Roman Chiporukha says interest from the UAE has been particularly strong. The vehicle, suspended from a giant balloon, is built by Florida-based Space Perspective.

Though the menu hasn’t been finalized yet, Munk’s Michelin-starred Alchemist restaurant in Copenhagen is known for such dishes as lamb’s brain in walnut oil and cherry sauce, rhubarb gazpacho and “Bikini Toast” filled with Gruyére cheese and Joselito ham.

“I want to highlight food as a common thread in our human existence, and it will be truly meaningful to serve it while gazing down at the Earth’s curvature,” Munk said.

Saudi Arabia’s campaign to expand its economy beyond dependence on oil is widening its global focus and turning up new corporate trading partners in South Korea, Asia’s fourth largest economy.

After a business conference in Seoul this week, the kingdom reported signing 10 agreements ranging from construction and energy to healthcare and food exports.

Saudi Minister of Commerce Majid Al-Qasabi led a delegation of 80 business executives and government officials at the Saudi-Korean Business Forum, where South Korean companies pitched cooperation in car manufacturing, data centers and urban infrastructure, Arab News reports.

Al-Qasabi also met with South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo after arriving in Seoul on Monday.

Commercial activity between the two countries, which reached $35 billion between 2019 and 2023, is likely to jump substantially with the signing of a free trade agreement last December between South Korea and the GCC, Cheong In-kyo, the head of trade negotiations at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, told the conference.

Abu Dhabi-based AI developer Bayanat, meanwhile, signed an agreement this month to form a joint venture with South Korea’s Autonomous a2z that will use driverless taxis to transport passengers arriving at Zayed International Airport to the Emirati capital’s hotels and attractions.

Egypt’s IMF-prescribed program to reform the economy with steps that include selling off state assets and devaluing the Egyptian pound won praise from the Washington-based lender after a review this week.

In turn, the IMF unlocked $820 million in support for the economy as part of the $57 billion bailout that Egypt received to help it emerge from its worst financial crisis in decades. “The Egyptian authorities’ recent efforts to restore macroeconomic stability have started to yield positive results,” the IMF said in a statement on Monday.

In the final runup to the review, Egypt raised fuel prices by up to 15% and Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced further plans to reduce energy subsidies. Still, the IMF called on the government to ratchet up its efforts to divest from state-owned businesses.

Egypt, meanwhile, is showcasing the reforms as it seeks more funding for business projects from Saudi Arabia. Egyptian Investment and Foreign Trade Minister Hassan El-Khatib said after a meeting in Cairo with Saudi Ambassador to Egypt Saleh bin Eid Al-Hussaini that the government “is keen to create a favorable investment climate and provide all necessary support to Saudi investors.”

UAE renewables company Masdar says it will continue to chase green energy projects in Europe, where high interest rates and rising debt costs are pushing utilities to sell stakes in wind farms and solar plants.

Masdar, which is owned by Mubadala, ADNOC and Abu Dhabi National Energy Co., has a goal of reaching 100 gigawatts of capacity in its portfolio by 2030 and has been quick to pounce on European projects that will help it rapidly scale up.

Last week it reached an $885 million agreement with Madrid-based Endesa to buy a 49.9% share of 48 solar farms with 2 gigawatts of capacity.

And in June it agreed to buy a majority stake in Greece’s biggest renewables company Terna Energy, in a deal that valued the company at $3.4 billion.

Masdar CFO Mazin Khan told Reuters that “normalization” of asset prices had created big opportunities in Europe and the Endesa deal was just a first step in its investment plans. 

The UAE has granted its first lottery license, a key step in establishing a regulated commercial gaming sector in the emirates, where construction of the Gulf’s first casino resort is underway in Ras Al Khaimah.

Approval of the new UAE Lottery, to be run by commercial gaming operator The Game LLC, was announced on Sunday by the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority, a federal body which was set up late last year to oversee gaming activities in the country, including lottery, online gaming, sports wagering and casino resorts.

“The launch of the UAE Lottery is a pivotal event that not only marks the establishment of a disciplined world-class regulatory framework for lottery activities but also underscores our commitment to nurturing a secure and enriched commercial gaming environment in the UAE,” Jim Murren, chairman of the GCGRA, said in a statement.

The new lottery license comes after existing raffle-style draws in the Emirates, including the popular weekly draw by Mahzooz, were required to pause business in January while the GCGRA developed its framework for gaming regulation.

It comes amid anticipation of Las Vegas casino operator Wynn Resorts’ $4 billion development on the Marjan islands, about one hour’s drive north of Dubai, which is expected to open in 2027.

Long a key regional commercial partner for the Gulf states, despite political disputes, Turkey is seeking to strengthen its ties by securing an across-the-board free trade agreement with the six member-states of the GCC.

Turkish officials began talks in Ankara on Monday with a delegation from Saudi Arabia, the largest of the Gulf states and first in the roster of GCC countries to negotiate the comprehensive deal.

The kingdom will be followed by Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain and the UAE before an agreement can be reached that reduces import taxes and other tariffs. The UAE, which does the largest amount of trade with Turkey among the Gulf states, will follow up to join the GCC pact.

Besides trade in oil, arms, construction and agricultural products, the pact is expected to have a broader impact on the region. Iraq, in particular, would benefit from its potential for becoming a corridor between Turkey and the Gulf states, according to a report by the Stimson Center, a Washington think tank.

Iraq announced the launch last year of a 1200-kilometer (750 mile) highway and rail project that would connect with Turkey’s transportation network.

More financial services firms that cater to ultra-high-net-worth families are popping up in the Arabian Peninsula as family offices emerge as one of the fastest-growing segments for wealth creation.

Octagon, a Dubai-headquartered family office-as-a-service firm, announced on Thursday it is now taking UAE clients.

The Great Wealth Transfer is forecasted to pass nearly $20 trillion from the older generations to Gen-X, Millennial and Gen-Z adult children and grandchildren over the next two decades.

This phenomenon will be acutely felt in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, where family businesses make up about 90% and 60% of private companies, respectively, according to government figures.

More family offices are cropping up to deploy this expanding pot of wealth as diversification from oil picks up pace in the region and opportunities for investment expand.

Octagon says it is geared specifically to family offices – for established and newly incorporated entities – with services including asset management, corporate services, business management and investment development in “lifestyle verticals” such as real estate, education and health.

Family office clients “have different wealth management perspectives – with more diversified portfolios, and a greater technology and impact focus,” the company said in a media release.