#Qatar Investment Authority takes 5% stake in Washington Wizards owner | Financial Times

Qatar Investment Authority takes 5% stake in Washington Wizards owner | Financial Times

The Qatar Investment Authority has taken a stake in the owner of Washington’s professional basketball and hockey teams, marking the first investment by a sovereign wealth fund in US sport. 

The fund is paying $200mn for a 5 per cent stake in Monumental Sports and Entertainment in a deal that values the owner of NBA’s Washington Wizards, the WNBA’s Washington Mystics and the National Hockey League’s Washington Capitals at $4.05bn, according to two people familiar with the matter. 

In recent years, Gulf states have ploughed billions of dollars into sport, from golf to tennis and football, partly to develop domestic tourism and entertainment sectors, but also in search of returns as the industry benefits from explosive growth in the value of media and broadcasting rights. 

The investment from QIA, which has an estimated $450bn in assets, comes less than a year after the NBA amended its bylaws to allow sovereign wealth funds to invest in clubs.

Gulf markets mixed on oil price drop; #Dubai at 8-year high | Reuters

Gulf markets mixed on oil price drop; Dubai at 8-year high | Reuters

Stock markets in the Gulf ended mixed on Monday after a fall in oil prices, and financial shares dragged down the Qatari index, while Dubai stocks closed at a nearly eight-year high.

Qatar's benchmark index (.QSI) declined 1.6%, as most of its biggest stocks were in negative territory, including the Gulf's biggest lender Qatar National Bank (QNBK.QA), which fell 2.8%.

Qatar National Bank reported a 4% drop in second-quarter net profit to 3.7 billion riyals ($1.02 billion).

Ahmed Negm, Head of Market Research MENA at XS.com, said the fall in heavyweight banking stocks could mean the market is exposed to new rounds of losses.

"However, a positive performance in natural gas markets could help limit the decline," he said.

Banking falls also hit Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI), which dropped 0.2% after a 0.6% decline in Al Rajhi Bank (1120.SE), while Saudi National Bank (1180.SE) eased 0.1%.

The kingdom's largest lender wanted to increase its stake in Credit Suisse to around 40% from 9.88%, but was prevented by Swiss regulator FINMA, Blick newspaper reported on Sunday.

UBS (UBSG.S) completed the emergency takeover of Credit Suisse last month, forging a Swiss banking and wealth management giant with a $1.6 trillion balance sheet and overseeing more than $5 trillion in assets.

The deal converted Saudi National Bank's stake in Credit Suisse into just 0.5% of UBS.

In Abu Dhabi, the index (.FTFADGI) fell 0.2%.

Oil prices - a catalyst for the Gulf's financial markets - dipped after weak economic data from top consumers the United States and China, although expected crude supply cuts from Saudi Arabia and Russia limited losses.

Dubai's main share index (.DFMGI) rose 0.4%, hitting its highest in nearly 8 years, led by a 4.2% jump in Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corp (EMPOWER.DU).

Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30) advanced 2.5%, ending four sessions of losses, buoyed by a 20% surge in Misr Fertilizers Production Co (MFPC.CA).

#Qatar National Bank's Q2 profit falls 4% | Reuters

Qatar National Bank's Q2 profit falls 4% | Reuters

Qatar National Bank (QNBK.QA), the oil-rich Gulf's biggest lender by assets, reported on Monday a 4% drop in second-quarter net profit to 3.7 billion riyals ($1.02 billion).

QNB missed analysts' mean estimate of 3.9 billion riyals net profit in the quarter, Refinitiv data showed.

The lender did not give a reason for the fall in Q2 profit, but said it has so far this year set aside 4.7 billion riyals "as provision for potential loan losses and NPL coverage ratio remained strong at 99%, reflecting a prudent approach adopted by the Group towards non-performing loans," it said.

Net profit for the first half of the year was 7.6 billion riyals, up 8% from the first half of 2022.

Total assets at the end of June were up 7% from a year earlier to just over 1.2 trillion riyals. Loans and advances also rose 7% to 819 billion riyals.

Next #Dubai? Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) Is Luring Billionaires, Tourists - Bloomberg

Next Dubai? Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) Is Luring Billionaires, Tourists - Bloomberg

From the top of the RAK International Corporate Centre, foreign tycoons can catch a glimpse of a city transforming.

A long stretch of desert lies toward the north. Luxury villas dot the Persian Gulf coast to the west. A few miles away, Las Vegas-based Wynn Resorts Ltd. is planning a project that it says is intended to be a $3.9 billion gaming resort.

This is Ras Al Khaimah, a northern territory of the United Arab Emirates about 45 minutes from Dubai’s international airport. Best known for its mountain peaks and ceramics company, the emirate is now pitching itself as a haven for high net worth individuals.

Under the leadership of its Michigan-educated sheikh, Ras Al Khaimah — RAK for short — is pursuing an ambitious foreign direct investment strategy that’s luring five-star hotels, industrialists and adventure-seeking tourists from countries ranging from Russia to the Czech Republic. While a Wynn Resort could give a particularly big boost, other efforts are also attracting wealthy executives.

#Kuwait’s $700 Billion Wealth Fund KIA Eclipsed by Flashier Mideast Peers - Bloomberg

Kuwait’s $700 Billion Wealth Fund KIA Eclipsed by Flashier Mideast Peers - Bloomberg

As Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds emerge as the go-to investors for some of the biggest deals, the world’s oldest and one of its largest is being eclipsed by its more ambitious, flashier neighbors.

The Kuwait Investment Authority, which manages the Gulf country’s $700 billion sovereign wealth fund, has lost several senior managers, including heads of key divisions over the past year, according to people with knowledge of the matter. It’s still to appoint successors for some of those positions, they said.

The KIA invested just $2.8 billion last year, compared with $25.9 billion by the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and $20.7 billion by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, according to boutique adviser and data firm Global SWF. While the funds’ often-secretive transactions can be hard to track with precision, similar estimates from Javier Capapé, who specializes in sovereign entities at Spain-based IE University, confirm the trend.

The KIA’s challenges are symptomatic of a broader malaise across Kuwait, battered by five changes of government in a year. There have been a series of investigations into the fund’s investments, and people familiar with the matter described increasing interference from ministers in its decision making. While it’s still making investments, a lack of direction and fear of scrutiny by lawmakers has caused a degree of paralysis at the fund on forging deals, the people said.

“Considering the size of its balance sheet and its long history as a global investor, KIA has been losing momentum against other regional SWFs that are more stable and active,” said Diego Lopez, managing director of Global SWF. “One of the key reasons is the numerous political changes that Kuwait has gone through recently, which have affected the board and the executive leadership of both the KIA and the Public Institution for Social Security.” The PIFSS is Kuwait’s public pension fund, whose top leaders were removed last year and still haven’t been replaced.

Most Gulf markets track oil, Asian shares lower; #AbuDhabi rises | Reuters

Most Gulf markets track oil, Asian shares lower; Abu Dhabi rises | Reuters

Most major stock markets in the Gulf were subdued on Monday, tracking oil prices and Asian shares lower, while the Abu Dhabi index bucked the trend.

Oil prices - a key catalyst for the Gulf's financial markets - dipped in Asian trade as investors tread cautiously ahead of fresh economic data from top consumers the United States and China this week, though expected crude supply cuts from Saudi Arabia and Russia limited losses.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI) dropped 0.2%, hit by a 0.4% fall in Al Rajhi Bank (1120.SE) and a 1.2% decline in Banque Saudi Fransi (1050.SE).

Among other losers, Saudi National Bank (1180.SE) fell 0.4%. The kingdom's largest lender wanted to increase its stake in Credit Suisse to around 40% from 9.88%, but was prevented from doing so by Swiss regulator FINMA, Blick newspaper reported on Sunday.

UBS (UBSG.S) completed the emergency takeover of Credit Suisse last month, forging a Swiss banking and wealth management giant with a $1.6 trillion balance sheet and overseeing more than $5 trillion in assets.

The deal converted Saudi National Bank's stake in Credit Suisse into just 0.5% of UBS.

In Qatar, the index (.QSI) retreated 0.8%, as most of the stocks on the index were in negative territory, including the Gulf's biggest lender Qatar National Bank (QNBK.QA), which was down 1.4%.

Dubai's main share index (.FTFADGI) was flat, hovering near an eight-year high.

The Abu Dhabi index (.FTFADGI) rose 0.1%.

Foreign direct investment (FDI) flows into the United Arab Emirates rose 10% in 2022 from the previous year to a record $23 billion, the United Nations trade body said in a report on Wednesday.

FDI inflows, globally, fell 12% in the year, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said in its World Investment Report 2023.