FRONTIERS-Gulf stocks offer alpha, if you know who to ask | Reuters

When Kuwait investors received anonymous text messages in the dead of night urging them to buy shares in telecoms operator Zain, they did something not many people in developed markets do. They paid attention.

Their demand helped the company's stock soar 23 percent in five February trading days, before the firm announced it would sell African assets in a $9 billion deal.

It's just one example of the risks an investor expects in any "frontier" market, but particularly the Middle East.