There is no Arab version of Aesop’s fable of the tortoise and the hare, but Manaf Alhajeri, chief executive of Kuwaiti investment bank Markaz, is a fan of the morality of the tale.
While much of Kuwait’s investment company sector went on a debt-fuelled spree, swelling balance sheets dramatically over the past decade, Markaz followed a more moderate course, and stuck largely to traditional strengths in asset management and advisory work.
When the financial crisis engulfed the region towards the end of 2008, the bank swiftly recognised its losses – the majority mark-to-market losses on money kept in funds it manages on behalf of investors. As a result, Markaz has emerged as one of the very few relatively healthy investment companies in Kuwait.
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