As Lebanon Economy Collapses, Some Young Men Have Joined the Islamic State – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– As Lebanon slid deeper into economic misery over recent months, dozens of young men have disappeared from the country’s marginalized north and later surfaced in Iraq, where they are believed to have joined the Islamic State group.
– Disappearance of young men began to rise in late August.
– There are several factors making the youth flee, and the main one is lack of jobs,” the mayor said.
– Even before the crisis, Tripoli was Lebanon’s poorest city — and things have only gotten worse with scores of young, seemingly unemployed men in the streets.
– When a young man who is between 15 and 30 cannot get married or buy anything or enter a restaurant to have a meal like all people, of course he will choose death and will be an easy target.”
Read more.
UAE Oil Producer Adnoc May Aim for $5 Billion of Bonds This Year – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. executives told debt investors during a call on Tuesday that they’re considering setting up a multi-year bond program of around $15 billion, said three of the people. The first deal, which will be issued from a new entity called Adnoc Murban, will be used to help refinance the company’s existing loans.
– Adnoc Murban was this week given the third-highest rating of AA or its equivalent by Moody’s Investors Service, S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings.
Read more.
UAE to Levy Federal Tax on Business Profits From June 2023 – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– The measure comes as the UAE seeks to align itself with new international standards, particularly the move toward a global minimum tax on multinational corporations endorsed by the Group of 20 major economies last year.
– The UAE announced in July its support for global tax standards and said Monday that its new 9% rate, which will come into effect in June 2023.
– Though in the UAE many of these large corporations operate inside free zones and will remain exempt provided they don’t do business with the mainland.
– Introducing a CT regime reaffirms the UAE’s commitment to meeting international standards for tax transparency and preventing harmful tax practices,” it said in a statement on its website.
– In 2020, the government abolished the need for companies to have Emirati shareholders — a major shake-up of foreign-ownership laws — and last year it unveiled plans to offer citizenship to a select group of foreigners.
Read more.
Chimera Capital: One of Biggest-Ever Tech Funds Wins Backing of UAE Royal’s Firm – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– A United Arab Emirates investment firm linked to an influential member of Abu Dhabi’s ruling family has emerged as a backer of one of the largest funds in venture capital history, joining forces with New York-based Alpha Wave to deploy $10 billion with a focus on India.
– Chimera Capital, part of a business empire overseen by Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed, said the Alpha Wave Ventures II Fund will target companies that have yet to go public, focusing on a range of assets from financial technology to artificial intelligence and life sciences.
– The fund has already invested in companies like Revolut, Monzo Bank Ltd. and Indian electric vehicle manufacturer Ola Electric Mobility Pvt Ltd.
Read more.
Salomon Brothers Alumni Tap Storied Firm’s Legacy in Revival – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– Smith said plans first hatched around three years ago to launch a bank that would take up the old Salomon Brothers mantle.
– For one thing, the bank won’t run a large bond-trading desk like the one that defined its predecessor.
– Even so, there will still be a chance for bankers to make a name for themselves by launching independent, boutique investment-banking practices that would still be able to draw on the larger organization’s reputation and resources, Smith said.
Read more.
Bolt’s Founder Ryan Breslow Is Worth Billions and Going After the Valley Elite – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– Breslow slammed the popular accelerator Y Combinator, attacked his sometime rival Stripe Inc. and called the Silicon Valley startup industry a “boys club” full of “mob bosses.”
– Breslow is the co-founder of Bolt Financial Inc., a startup that facilitates online checkouts and secured an $11 billion valuation from investors in January.
– He has a 25% stake that’s worth about $2.75 billion.
– The startup doesn’t charge merchants for using its software but earns money every time a shopper who has already enrolled in Bolt’s system checks out.
– Breslow raised money from prominent New York firms including funds managed by BlackRock Inc., General Atlantic and Dan Och’s Willoughby Capital.
– Ultimately, Bolt’s success will hinge on how many large customers it can sign up. Bolt and its competitors, like PeachPay Inc. and Shopify’s Shop Pay, are trying to create the largest possible group of merchants and shoppers that use their software.
Read more.