Dr. Ajith Kumar V.V
Lemon Tree International, a subsidiary of Al Waleed Investment Group, has opened its first hotel in the UAE. The Lemon Tree Dubai Hotel on Al Wasl Road in Jumeirah, features 114 rooms, restaurant, an outdoor lounge, conference hall, swimming pool and a wellness centre. The 3-star mid-range property represents an investment value of up to AED100 million ($27.2 million), a statement said. Mohammed Abdul Razzaq Al Mutawa, CEO of Al Waleed Investment Group, said: "The local market in Dubai in various economic sectors is particularly engaging and has continued to gain interest from international companies that aspire to win the best investment opportunities in light of the growing demand for the local environment. "Rattan Kiswani, deputy general manager of Lemon Tree Hotels & Resorts, said: "We are delighted to enter the hospitality market in Dubai, with the management of the first distinctive hotel facilities in the emirate."
Source: https://www.arabianbusiness.com/travel-hospitality/435172-lemon-tree-international-invests-27m-in-first-uae-hotel
Dr. Ajith Kumar V.V
Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund Mubadala is placing a bet on the growing demand for food delivery platforms with an investment in Spanish start-up Glovo. Mubadala was the lead investor in Glovo’s 150 million euro ($167 million) funding round closed Wednesday, according to a statement, bringing its valuation to over $1 billion. Other backers in Barcelona-based Glovo included Drake Enterprises, Lakestar and Idinvest, all of which were already investors. This was the third round in which Glovo raised more than 100 million euros over the past 17 months, as it seeks to bolster its position in the booming food delivery sector by expanding into new markets and increasing its software development teams. Glovo operates in 26 countries.
Source: https://www.arabianbusiness.com/transport/435717-uaes-mubadala-invests-in-spanish-food-delivery-firm-glovo
Dr. Ajith Kumar V.V
Italian automotive champion fears a feminine model would drive away male customers which make up a significant portion if its consumer base. The world’s most popular supercar maker does not want to make cars for women. Italian automotive champion Ferrari says it would be a “mistake” to design a car for women because its female clients do not want a “female Ferrari” and look to experience the brand’s renowned performance and aggressive design. “We know there’s an important number of females who want to drive a Ferrari. The important thing we learned is that they don’t want a Ferrari for females,” Enrico Galliera told Arabian Business.
Source: https://www.arabianbusiness.com/transport/435831-making-supercars-for-women-mistake-ferrari
Dr. Ajith Kumar V.V
Dubai-based Majid Al Futtaim (MAF) CEO Alain Bejjani has revealed ambitious expansion plans, which include a $996.26 million investment in Egypt and a further $533.6m in Saudi Arabia. Bejjani told Reuters that the company’s investment, which will be spread over the next two to three years, is set to include $866m on a single mall in Cairo. Further expansion plans include opening seven Carrefour locations in Uzbekistan in 2020 and to open a Carrefour in Uganda on December 16, which will be the company’s first investment there.
Source: https://www.arabianbusiness.com/retail/434916-majid-al-futtaim-to-invest-15bn-in-saudi-egypt-expansion-plans
Dr. Ajith Kumar V.V
State-owned oil giant Saudi Aramco has raised a record $25.6bn (£19.4bn) in its initial public offering in Riyadh. The share sale was the biggest to date, surpassing that of China's Alibaba which raised $25bn in 2014 in New York. Aramco relied on domestic and regional investors to sell a 1.5% stake after lukewarm interest from abroad. The IPO will value it at $1.7tn when trading begins - short of its $2tn target, but making it the most valuable listed company in the world.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/business-50681159
Dr. Ajith Kumar V.V
A unit of Ericsson AB pleaded guilty to foreign bribery and the parent company agreed to pay more than $1 billion to resolve a long-running US corruption investigation involving payoffs in Asia and the Middle East. The Stockholm-based company admitted to a years-long campaign of corruption aimed at solidifying its grip on the telecommunications business, US Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman in Manhattan said in announcing the settlement that outlined tens of millions of dollars in illicit payments in five countries.
Source: https://www.arabianbusiness.com/technology/434969-ericsson-pays-over-1bn-to-settle-us-corruption-probe
Dr. Ajith Kumar V.V
Forex brokerage firm Axiory Global has opened a base in Dubai to cover the Middle East market. The online brokerage service will operate out of premises in Business Bay where they will employ ten members of staff, in what is the company's first move into the region. CEO of Axiory Global Ltd, Roberto d’Ambrosio, said: “UAE is an optimistic and a dominant market with great players. Axiory’s unique selling point is that we look at the human part of the business, and by that, I mean we are traders and investors ourselves.
Source: https://www.arabianbusiness.com/banking-finance/434772-axiory-global-opens-middle-east-base-in-dubai
Dr. Ajith Kumar V.V
Just in case you were worried electric cars were going to be boring, Porsche made the Taycan. It isn't perfect and, yes, it is expensive, but it is absolutely not boring. Sure, Tesla offers the aptly named Ludicrous Mode that can launch a Model S from a dead stop to 60 miles an hour in something gut-twistingly close to two seconds. That is also not boring. But the Porsche Taycan Turbo S can get to 60 almost as fast as a Tesla and it can rip through a twisting canyon road at high speed as easily as cruising a beachfront boulevard. Except its way more exciting than cruising a beachfront boulevard.
Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2019/12/06/cars/porsche-taycan-review/index.html
Dr. Ajith Kumar V.V
UAE-based hotel operator Rotana has announced the soft opening of Johari Rotana in Tanzania’s commercial city of Dar es Salaam, further cementing its presence in Africa’s fast-growing hospitality sector. The new five-star property marks the company’s entrance to the East African market, Rotana said in a statement. The property offers 253 keys, as well as 60 fully furnished and serviced apartments. The rooms, suites, and apartments are spread across 15 floors starting from the 13th floor of a 65,000 sq m mixed-use project.
Source: https://www.arabianbusiness.com/travel-hospitality/434257-uaes-rotana-launches-first-hotel-in-tanzania
Dr. Ajith Kumar V.V
The UAE is one of the leading destinations for innovators and entrepreneurs in the blockchain space. The nation nurtures a robust blockchain tech innovation ecosystem by welcoming the newest and most forward-thinking blockchain startups from around the world. The Dubai Future Council for Blockchain launched the Dubai Blockchain Policy at the ninth Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona recently. Its launch complements Smart Dubai's efforts to implement the Dubai Blockchain Strategy, which was launched in 2016. The strategy seeks to make the Dubai government the first in the world to conduct 100 per cent of applicable transactions via blockchain by 2020.
Source: https://www.khaleejtimes.com/business/local/uae-at-the-forefront-of-blockchain-adoption