Wealth controlled by high networth individuals (HNWI) in the Middle East is expected to growth substantially more than the global rate of 6% over the coming years, Merrill Lynch said on Wednesday. The global financial management firm, which is expected to release its latest World Wealth Report next week, said oil revenues - which have increased dramatically in recent years due to high prices and rising demand - are driving the growth. “The region sits on 60% of the world’s oil reserves. Due to high oil prices, there is an abundance of liquidity in the market,” said Ahmass Fakahany, Merrill Lynch president and chief operating officer (COO), speaking at the opening of the bank’s regional headquarters at Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).
“We wish to make use of it by raising funds for our clients from the region,” Fakahany added.According to Merrill Lynch’s previous World Wealth Report, the combined assets of the region’s wealthy reached $1.23 trillion in 2005, an increase of almost 20% on the previous year. The number of people with assets of at least $1 million in the UAE rose around 12% to almost 60,000 in 2005, while the number of millionaires in Saudi Arabia increased 13.5% to just over 80,000.The opening of Merrill Lynch's regional headquarters came just a day after it announced it had received a banking license to operate in Saudi Arabia from the Kingdom’s Capital Markets Authority. The license will allow Merrill Lynch to offer its domestic and global clients investment banking and wealth management services.The firm was awarded a full banking license by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) in January. Source
No comments:
Post a Comment