Business Extra

Deutsche Bank's giant dose of medicine

Host Mustafa Alrawi, Assistant Editor in Chief and Chris Nelson, Assistant Business Editor, discuss Deutsche Bank's sweeping revamp. 

This week the German bank announced it will shrink its trading activities by 40 per cent through an unprecedented withdrawal from equities. About 18,000 jobs, almost 20 per cent of the workforce, will go around the world, including in London. The overhaul is forecast to cost €7.4 billion (Dh30.45bn). 

We break down India's budget and despite a lack of 'big bang' explain how it still puts the country on the path towards meeting its 2025 objective of doubling the size of its economy. Plus Sir Richard Branson's space tourism ambitions kick up a gear with IPO  plans for Virgin Galactic.  

We also speak to Alice Haine our personal finance editor about how to best manage your money during the summer holidays. We settle that age old debate about cash versus cards and which currency should you make credit card payments in - local or dirhams.  

In this episode:

- Headlines (0 minutes 53 seconds)

- Deutsche Bank discussion (1m 45s)

- India's budget (8m 0s)

- Virgin Galactic (12m 19s)

- Summer money tips with Alice Haine (14m 15s)

 Read more on our website:
• Mass layoffs at Deutsche Bank as huge overhaul kicks in
• Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic space tourism venture to go public

• Mixed reactions to new Indian finance minister's budget

• The real cost of not having travel insurance for your holiday

Exclusive interview with BR Shetty part 2 – Travelex, the power of tea and the Golden Card visa

Mustafa Alrawi, Assistant Editor in Chief talks exclusively to BR Shetty

the founder of NMC Healthcare, Finablr and Neopharma, as well as the Founder and Chairman of BRS Ventures.

In the second part of the interview, Mr Shetty recounts how he managed to buy the global foreign exchange business Travelex thanks to his belief in keeping good personal relationships. He is also backing Assam tea to become a worldwide brand now that he owns the oldest producer in India. He explains what he learnt at Harvard University, how sustainable philanthropy makes solid commercial sense and why he wants to make a film of the Mahabharat. Mr Shetty says that being given permanent residency in the UAE was one of the best moments of his life and that the Golden Card visa programme will give lots of other Indian expats lots of confidence in what success can mean here.

Read more on our website:
• Exclusive: NMC Health eyes profit increase in 2018, fuelled by $2bn warchest

• 'This is an unbelievable dream': BR Shetty granted 10-year UAE visa

•My Ramadan: For Hindu billionaire BR Shetty, the holy month is about giving

• Finablr makes London stock market debut at reduced price

Exclusive interview with BR Shetty part 1 – Sheikh Zayed’s vision and why Modi is great for Indian businesses

Mustafa Alrawi, Assistant Editor in Chief talks exclusively to BR Shetty

the founder of NMC Healthcare, Finablr and Neopharma, as well as the Founder and Chairman of BRS Ventures.

In the first part of the interview, Mr Shetty shares some anecdotes about building up a fledgling business in Abu Dhabi in the 1970s and 1980s including how one morning he had to get behind the wheel of an ambulance himself to get to the scene of a medical emergency.  He recounts his memories of the Founding Father Sheikh Zayed. And he also explains how everyone told him not to build a pharmaceutical factory in Abu Dhabi but he proved them wrong. Mr Shetty says he is sure that joining the Bill and Melinda Gates Giving Pledge was a good thing for him and his family. He also says Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is great for business but that he doesn’t miss his first career in local politics back home.

Read more on our website:
• Exclusive: NMC Health eyes profit increase in 2018, fuelled by $2bn warchest

• 'This is an unbelievable dream': BR Shetty granted 10-year UAE visa

•My Ramadan: For Hindu billionaire BR Shetty, the holy month is about giving

• Finablr makes London stock market debut at reduced price

The UAE golden visa rundown

Thousands of foreign investors and residents have been identified for a "golden card" permanent residency scheme, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai announced in May.

Top business leaders from across the Emirates said the move will give investors greater confidence to settle in the country. They also believe it will create greater demand for buying property, boosting a sluggish property market in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

On Tuesday the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs announced that 400 individuals had received the golden card so far and that executives with a salary of Dh30,000 or more could apply for the visa. 

Host Mustafa Alrawi, Assistant Editor in Chief, and Kelsey Warner, Assistant Business Editor, discuss the potential impact that the 'Golden Card' could bring.

Read more on our website:

• Who is eligible and how to apply for the UAE's 10-year golden residency visa

Ghadan 21 stimulus latest and five oil outcomes from Iran-US tensions

Mustafa Alrawi, Assistant Editor in Chief, hears from Rashed Al Bloushi, Under Secretary of the Department of Economic Development about what Ghadan 21 is all about on the day nine new initiatives were announced outlining R&D investment, electricity tariff discounts, business licensing for technology and state-backed bank loans for SMEs.

Kelsey Warner, Assistant Business Editor also joins the discussion about what the outlook for Abu Dhabi's economy will be going into 2020. 

Also, amid regional tensions and the US-Iran stand-off, The National’s energy columnist Robin Mills – CEO of Qamar Energy, and author of The Myth of the Oil Crisis – has five possible outcomes for oil markets.

In this episode:

- Headlines (48 seconds)

- Rashed Al Bloushi on Ghadan 21 (4 minutes 20 seconds) 

- Robin Mills on oil markets (21 minutes 28 seconds)

Read more on our website:

• Ghadan 21: Abu Dhabi to boost business and ecotourism with major new reforms

• FAB inks deal with Abu Dhabi Government to extend state-backed loans to SMEs

• Ghadan 21: Abu Dhabi to slash energy bills for businesses

• Boeing 777X: folding wing tips shown off as test plane makes runway debut

• Wind to dominate renewables growth over the coming decade, Fitch says

• UAE rolls out anti-money laundering platform developed by UN

• How a conflict with Iran will play out for oil

ADNOC on fertile ground with OCI deal

Fertilisers play a critical role in ensuring the security of the global food supply. Overnight, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company group has gone from the 12th-largest nitrogen-based fertiliser exporter in the world to the biggest, thanks to its tie up with Nassef Sawiris' OCI. The Abu Dhabi company will combine unit Adnoc Fertilisers with OCI’s regional nitrogen-based fertiliser platform, to create one of the largest exporters of the product globally. OCI has fertiliser production operations in Egypt and Algeria.

Host Mustafa Alrawi, Assistant Editor in Chief and Kelsey Warner, Assistant Business Editor, break down the significance of ADNOC's move. We also talk about Boeing's difficult week with Emirates in talks to renegotiate its 777X aircraft deal. There may also need to be a rebranding of the troubled 737 Max once it is fit to fly again. 

And, The National’s Head of Features, Nyree McFarlane, recently visited Facebook’s Menlo Park headquarters to get the inside track on the social media company. Kelsey spoke to her about it. 

In this episode:

- Headlines (48seconds)

- ADNOC and OCI fertiliser tie-up (2m3seconds)

- Boeing and Emirates (8m40seconds)

- Inside Facebook's campus (13m47seconds)

Read more on our website:

• ADNOC and Sawiris' OCI create world's largest fertiliser exporter
• Fertilisers deal is key to future growth
• Embattles Boeing may change name of 737 Max jet following fatal crashes
• Facebook's new cryptocurrency Libra will hit the market in 2020

Amazon primed to shake up online shopping in UAE

Nearly Two years on from the acquisition of Souq.com, the US e-commerce company Amazon is front and centre in the UAE again with the launch of its paid subscription service, Prime.

   

Host Mustafa Alrawi, Assistant Editor in Chief, and Kelsey Warner, Assistant Business Editor, talk to Nada El Sawy, The National's Business Correspondent, about what this development means for consumers and retailers in the region.

Also there was the meeting in Japan of  G20 countries' central bank governors this week where IMF head Christine Lagarde sounded down a warning about properly harnessing FinTech. US-China trade tensions dominated the mood however with the full G20 leaders meeting still to come and a face-off between Washington and Beijing. Opec and its allies have extended their co-operation on oil production curbs, shoring up prices. But for how much longer?

Read more on our website:

• Amazon Prime now available in the UAE
• Oil gains as OPEC and allies vow output cut extension
• Donald Trump say's he'll raise China tariffs again if Xi Jinping won't meet at G20
• Dubai Land Department and Mashreq bank sign e-mortgage deal
• London home sellers offer ever-growing discounts

Apple's second bite at content and a robust economic picture for Abu Dhabi

Apple will break up iTunes into Apple Music, Apple Podcasts and Apple TV as it revamps how it delivers content. 

Host Mustafa Alrawi, Assistant Editor and Chief, and Kelsey Warner, Assistant Business Editor, explain what the US company's changes could mean for its own future, as well as that of the media and technology landscape and not least, consumers.

Zahabia Gupta, Associate Director, Sovereign and International Public Finance Ratings at S&P Global Ratings is in the the studio to talk about the ratings agency's latest report on Abu Dhabi’s economic outlook which says that growth will will average 2.5 per cent over the next three years, before rising to 3 per cent off the back of increased government spending and higher oil production. 

Zahabia runs through the potential risks to S&P's assessment for Abu Dhabi – both to the upside and downside.

In this episode:

- Top news headlines (44 seconds)

- We discuss Apple's big announcement about iTunes (2 minutes 27 seconds)

- S&P's Zahabia Gupta talks about Abu Dhabi's outlook (12 minutes)

Read more on our website:
• Abu Dhabi economy to grow by 2.5% till 2022
• Apple iTunes demise will usher in a trio of better apps
• Airlines to inspect Boeing 737s after US regulator says some jets may have defective parts
• Debt and aggressive credit card selling among top UAE consumer complaints, says Central Bank
• Oil continues slide as Opec pledges to do 'whatever it takes'

Careem gets on its bike with Cyacle acquisition

Ride-hailing platform Careem has acquired UAE-based bike-sharing company Cyacle for an undisclosed sum, its first foray into "micro-mobility" — an increasingly popular concept for providing easy access to scooter and bike rentals in urban areas.

Magnuss Olsson, Careem’s co-founder, sees that increasing bicycle availability and expanding bike routes will transform how people commute in the region.

Host Mustafa Alrawi, Assistant Editor in Chief, and Kelsey Warner, Assistant Business Editor, discuss the potential of such fresh solutions for transport’s ‘last-mile’ problem.

Also, Chris Nelson, Assistant Business Editor speaks to Andrea Petti, managing director of PTV Group, the traffic and logistics software company owned by Porsche. Mr Petti explains what he thinks will be the main factors behind the mainstream adoption of autonomous transport in the future.

In this episode: 

• Top news of the week (36 seconds)  
• Careem’s purchase of Cyacle (3 minutes 40s)  
• Interview with PTV Group’s Andrea Petti (11m 30s)

Read more on our website:

• Careem acquires Abu Dhabi's Cyacle bike-share company
• Cryptocurrencies bounce back with Bitcoin rising to highest level in a year
• Lebanon 2019 budget is start of a long economic recovery process, Saad Hariri says
• Dubai Land Department and Mashreq bank sign e-mortgage deal
• London home sellers offer ever-growing discounts

Permanent UAE residency is a reality with the Golden Card

Thousands of foreign investors and residents have been identified for a "golden card" permanent residency scheme, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai announced on Tuesday.

Top business leaders from across the Emirates said the move will give investors greater confidence to settle in the country. They also believe it will create greater demand for buying property, boosting a sluggish property market in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Host Mustafa Alrawi, Assistant Editor in Chief, and Kelsey Warner, Assistant Business Editor, discuss the potential impact that the 'Golden Card' could bring (1.50).

We then discuss the latest developments around Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei which is being targeted by Washington over concerns its 5G domination could open a back door for Beijing (8.50).

Also in this episode, Chris Nelson interviews Zeina Akkawi (14.45), a co-founder of The PlayPreneurs Club, which helps Emirati entrepreneurs access mentoring to build their businesses.