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☆ Investment momentum is rising in the region, Invest Qatar CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailInvestment momentum is rising in the region, Invest Qatar CEO saysSheikh Ali Alwaleed Al Thani, CEO of the Investment Promotion Agency Qatar (Invest Qatar), discusses investment opportunities in the region and the Qatar Investment Authority's decision to invest $1 billion in international and regional venture capital funds.

Persons: Sheikh Ali Alwaleed Al Thani Organizations: Invest, Investment, Agency Qatar, Qatar Investment Locations: Invest Qatar, Qatar

☆ Sovereign wealth funds will be 'market makers,' UAE venture capital firm says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailSovereign wealth funds will be 'market makers,' UAE venture capital firm saysFadi Ghandour, executive chairman of Wamda Capital, discusses the Qatar Investment Authority's decision to invest $1 billion in international and regional venture capital funds.

Persons: Fadi Ghandour Organizations: Wamda, Qatar Investment Locations: UAE, Qatar

☆ Cultivated Meat’s Empty Promise of Revolution - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Joe Fassler | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

It is a gleaming vision of a world just beyond the present: a world in which meat is abundant and affordable with almost no cost to the environment. Meat without killing is the central promise of what’s come to be known as cultivated meat. Between 2016 and 2022, investors poured almost $3 billion into cultivated meat and seafood companies. Two of the leading companies — Eat Just and Upside Foods, both startups — reportedly achieved billion-dollar valuations. And today, a few products that include cultivated cells have been approved for sale in Singapore, the United States and Israel.

Persons: what’s, —, Qatar Investment Authority —, Tyson, Cargill, Leonardo DiCaprio, Bill Gates, Richard Branson . Organizations: Qatar Investment Authority, JBS, Foods Locations: Temasek, Singapore, United States, Israel

☆ With Washington Capitals, Wizards move to Virginia, owner Ted Leonsis pursues his vision of a $10 billion sports empire around Washington, D.C.
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-14 | by ( Ian Thomas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Glenn Youngkin (L) looks on during the announcement of a new sports arena for the Washington Wizards NBA basketball team and Washington Capitals NHL hockey team, on December 13, 2023 Virginia. Win Mcnamee | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesTed Leonsis, the owner of the NBA's Washington Wizards and the NHL's Washington Capitals, has a grand vision for growing a regional sports empire. Glenn Youngkin announced that the Capitals and Wizards have agreed to move to a new arena in Alexandria, Virginia, as part of a $2 billion entertainment complex in 2028. How will they compete with big market teams? "We could have a billion-and-a-half-dollar revenue run rate and a $10 billion to $15 billion trend of valuation," Leonsis said.

Persons: Ted Leonsis, Glenn Youngkin, Win Mcnamee, Leonsis, we'll, aren't, I'm, it's, It's, David Rubenstein, David Blitzer, Blackstone, James Dolan, Stan Kroenke, Kroenke, I've Organizations: Monumental Sports, Entertainment, Virginia Gov, Washington Wizards NBA, Washington Capitals NHL, Getty, Washington Wizards, NHL's Washington Capitals, CNBC, Summit, Washington , D.C, AOL, Capitals, Wizards, Washington Mystics, Capital, D.C, Sports, Mystics, NHL, Baltimore Orioles, Washington Nationals, MLB, Carlyle Group, Bloomberg, Orioles, Red Sox, Fenway Sports Group, Boston Red Sox, Pittsburgh Penguins, Premier League's Liverpool, Philadelphia 76ers, New, New Jersey Devils, Washington, Cleveland Guardians, MSG, Sphere Entertainment, Madison Square Garden Entertainment, New York Knicks, Rangers, MSG Networks, Atlanta Braves Holdings, Liberty Media, Sports & Entertainment, Nuggets, Avalanche, Los Angeles Rams, Premier League's Arsenal FC, Qatar Investment Authority, MSG Sports, NHL's Rangers, NBA's Knicks, Phoenix Suns, NBA, Ottawa Senators, Braves Locations: Virginia, Alexandria , Virginia, Washington ,, Washington, London, Richmond, Delaware, New Jersey, Real Salt Lake, Denver, MLS's Rapids, Colorado, Monumental

☆ Barclays shares slip after major backer Qatar cuts stake
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Qatar Investment Authority, the state sovereign wealth fund which owns Qatar Holding, did not respond to a request for comment. The share sale comes as Barclays embarks on a shake-up to cut costs and revive its share price, which has halved since Qatar first invested in 2008. Barclays' stock fell as much as 4.5% in early trading and was last down 2.5% at 1007 GMT. Qatar became Barclays' largest shareholder during the 2008 financial crisis when it injected 4 billion pounds into the UK bank in a deal that helped avert a taxpayer bailout. Britain's financial watchdog later fined Barclays $55 million for fees paid to Qatari entities in the 2008 fundraising, which Barclays said it would appeal.

Persons: Venkatakrishnan, Vekatakrishnan, Iain Withers, Sinead Cruise, Pablo Mayo Cerqueiro, Lawrence White, Danilo Masoni, Andrew Mills, Kirsten Donovan, Emelia Organizations: Barclays, Qatar, Reuters, Qatar Investment Authority, Qatar Holding, Thomson Locations: Qatar, Germany, London, Milan, Doha

MOSCOW, Dec 1 (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree putting St Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport under the temporary management of a Russian company, wresting control from investors from Germany, Qatar and other Gulf states. The airport's management company has 14 co-owners. The rights of foreign shareholders will pass to two different Russian entities. Russian shareholders will retain their rights. The decree stated that airport's foreign shareholders would be able to restore their rights to stakes in the new company if they apply and conclude corporate agreements that comply with Russian laws on foreign investment.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Fraport, VTB, Ramzan Kadyrov, Taimuraz, Carlsberg's, Gleb Stolyarov, Alexander Marrow, Ilona Wissenbach, Gareth Jones, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: Petersburg's Pulkovo, Qatar Investment Authority, Russian Direct Investment Fund, Baring, Baltika Breweries, Reuters, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Russian, Germany, Qatar, St Petersburg, Abu Dhabi, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow

☆ Qatar wealth fund eyeing investment opportunities in China's retail, tech sectors
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Qatar's sovereign wealth fund Qatar Investment Authority is examining opportunities to invest in China's retail, healthcare, tech and logistics sectors, said Abdulla Al-Kuwari, head of the fund's unit Qatar Investment Authority Advisory (Asia Pacific). Those opportunities could involve public and private companies, Al-Kuwari said on Thursday during the Caixin Summit in Beijing. Chinese funds are also seeking new capital sources in the Middle East, as headwinds including diplomatic tensions drive many U.S. investors out of the country. Several China equity funds, including hedge funds and mutual funds, have told Reuters they visited the Middle East this year to raise money. Reporting by Roxanne Liu and Kane Wu; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Michael PerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Abdulla Al, Kuwari, LSEG, Roxanne Liu, Kane Wu, Muralikumar Anantharaman, Michael Perry Organizations: Qatar Investment Authority, Qatar Investment Authority Advisory, Asia, Al, Buyers, Reuters, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, Qatar, Beijing . Middle East, China, Saudi Arabia

☆ Canary Wharf may yet avoid once-a-decade upheaval
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( Yawen Chen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LONDON, Nov 6 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Canary Wharf tends to have a new owner every decade. A recent 300 million pound equity injection implies they will buck the trend. Brookfield and the QIA, which own the estate’s developer Canary Wharf Group through a 50-50 partnership, ostensibly look to be backing a losing horse. Factoring in all its assets on the Canary Wharf estate, Brookfield as of September valued it all at $6.1 billion, or 5 billion pounds – over 2 billion pounds more than what the duo put in eight years ago. Canary Wharf could be owned by highly leveraged, shallow-pocketed types.

Persons: –, Paul Reichmann’s Olympia, Morgan, Breakingviews, dory, George Hay, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, HSBC, HK, London Docklands, Qatar Investment Authority, Canary, York, Morgan Stanley, Jefferies, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Brookfield, Wharf Group, Thomson Locations: Brookfield, –, CWG, City, Wharf

☆ The Israel-Hamas war threatens to derail Middle Eastern investment in US media and entertainment
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-04 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Still, the US presence highlighted the deepening ties between Hollywood and the region , as Western media, entertainment, and sports entities have seen major investment in recent years from Saudi, Qatar, and the UAE. Even before October 7, US entities that were receiving investment from the Middle East were reluctant to speak publicly about those relationships. Insider spoke with investors, producers, and other media and entertainment stakeholders about what's next for Hollywood's relationships with Mideast backers. Qatar hasn't seen any recent major deals but earlier this year, Peter Chernin and Providence Equity's production roll-up The North Road received $150 million from the Qatar Investment Authority. "The political nature gets more complicated," an industry insider observer said, noting how countries like Qatar are grabbing headlines for their role in the situation.

Persons: haven't, Jamal Khashoggi, Israel, it's, Knaebel, They're, Greg Silverman's, Silverman, Harry Potter, Chris Nolan's, Abu Dhabi's, Ari Emanuel, Peter Chernin, Jeff Zucker, LIV Golf Organizations: Film, Washington Post, Hollywood, Global Media, Saudi, Stampede Ventures, Warner Bros, Endeavor, Qatar hasn't, Providence, North, Qatar Investment Authority, IMI, CNN, Investment Fund, PGA Locations: Saudi Arabia, American, Jeddah, Saudi, Qatar, UAE, Gaza, Israel, Germany, Silver

Maine is the latest state to address foreign influence in elections. The Maine referendum on the Nov. 7 ballot would ban foreign governments, or companies with 5% or more foreign government ownership, from donating to future referendum races. The Maine proposal is straightforward by targeting foreign governments and companies owned by them, while leaving untouched foreign-based corporations with no government ownership. The idea of foreign influence in U.S. elections is something that unites people in an era of deep partisan divisions. “Of course we shouldn’t have foreign governments meddling in our elections.”___Follow David Sharp on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, @David_Sharp_AP

Persons: Aaron McKean, McKean, Daniel Weiner, It’s, ” Weiner, “, Sen, Rick Bennett, —, Janet Mills, Maine’s, ”, Sarah Walker, Bennett, George Washington, David Sharp, @David_Sharp_AP Organizations: —, Hydro, Washington , D.C, Brennan Center for Justice, Hydro Quebec, Central Maine Power, CMP, Canadian, Republican, Democratic Gov, Maine Press Association, Maine Association of Broadcasters, Norges Bank, Qatar Investment Authority Locations: PORTLAND, Maine, — Maine, Hydro Quebec, Canadian, Washington ,, Minnesota, Florida, Idaho, Seattle, Portland , Maine, U.S, ” Maine, Spanish, In Montana, California, Luxembourg, Cyprus, Los Angeles, Canada, Calgary, Alberta, Qatar

☆ Indian billionaire Ambani's Reliance Retail to raise $598 mln from ADIA
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Amit Dave/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBENGALURU, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Retail Ventures said on Friday it would raise 49.67 billion rupees ($598 million) from the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, in the latest bet on India's largest retailer ahead of a potential stock market listing. "Reliance Retail has demonstrated strong growth and adaptability in a market that is evolving at an unprecedented pace," said Hamad Shahwan Aldhaheri, executive director of the private equities department at ADIA. The investment comes as Reliance set an internal target to raise $3.5 billion. ADIA and Singapore's GIC had invested $664 million each into the retail unit in 2020 as Reliance sold a 10.09% stake at a valuation of 4.68 trillion rupees. Morgan Stanley acted as financial adviser to Reliance Retail Ventures for the ADIA deal.

Persons: Amit Dave, Mukesh, Hamad Shahwan Aldhaheri, Singapore's GIC, Ambani, Morgan Stanley, Chris Thomas, Maju Samuel Organizations: Reliance Industries, REUTERS, Rights, Retail Ventures, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, ADIA, Reliance, KKR, Qatar Investment Authority, Reuters, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, Reliance Retail Ventures, Thomson Locations: Ahmedabad, India, Abu Dhabi, ADIA, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Bengaluru

"We're definitely seeing a bit of a soft open in the IPO market", said Lizzie Reed, global head of the ECM syndicate desk at Goldman Sachs. Arm and Instacart shares briefly fell below their issue price, suggesting there is still some way before the IPO market fully recovers. Medical glass producer Schott Pharma (1SXP.F) debuted on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange on Thursday, with shares closing 16% above the IPO price. Klaviyo's shares are now trading at a 21% premium to their IPO price. "For the IPO market to open more broadly in the first quarter in 2024 ... we need the 2023 IPO cohort to continue to perform well," said Josh Weismer, head of U.S. ECM, Mizuho Americas.

Persons: Lizzie Reed, Goldman Sachs, IPOs, Robert Stowe ,, Suneel Hargunani, Schott, ThyssenKrupp, Hidrolectrica, Ross Devor, ”, Samir A, Gandhi, Stephane Gruffat, SoftBank, Josh Weismer, Echo Wang, Pablo Mayo, Anousha Sakoui, David Holmes Organizations: Bankers, ECM, Arm Holdings, Barclays, Citigroup, Schott Pharma, Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Thoma Bravo, Deutsche Bank, Nvidia, Apple, Qatar Investment Authority, U.S, Mizuho, Pablo Mayo Cerqueiro, Thomson Locations: United States, Europe, British, New York, U.S, IPOs, East, Africa, Romanian, Qatar, Mizuho Americas, London

LONDON, Sept 21 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Barely a day goes by without an eye-catching story involving Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. A third of the fund consists of significant stakes in domestic companies like the $51 billion Saudi Telecom Company (7010.SE) and $53 billion Saudi National Bank (1180.SE). Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsThe PIF’s investment strategy is also racier than its more conservative peers. But the episode reinforces the impression that the PIF is a mix of venture capital, hedge fund and startup money. The most spectacular was probably handing $45 billion to SoftBank Group (9984.T) boss Masayoshi Son for his $100 billion first Vision Fund.

Persons: Kylian Mbappé, It’s, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Yasir Al, Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala, Rumayyan, Salman bin Abdulaziz, Masayoshi Son, SWFs, Taiwan’s Foxconn, Peter Thal Larsen, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Standard Chartered, Spanish telco Telefonica, Fund, Abu, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Global, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Saudi, Saudi Telecom Company, Saudi National Bank, Saudi Aramco, giga, Qatar Investment Authority, Singapore’s Temasek, Al, MbS, SoftBank Group, Vision, Credit Suisse, UBS, Saudi giga, Aramco, Investment, Thomson Locations: Spanish, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, Saudi

☆ Ambani’s retail backers dispel only a little doubt
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Shritama Bose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Asia’s richest man is raising fresh funds to trim debt and expand the shopping unit of his flagship Reliance Industries (RELI.NS). Ambit Capital, a broking firm, for example ascribes Reliance Retail a $57 billion valuation in a sum of the parts analysis, almost half Bernstein’s estimated $111 billion. Any financial haze around Reliance Retail will naturally clear whenever it publishes a detailed listing prospectus. U.S. private equity giant KKR will invest 20.7 billion rupees ($250 million) into Reliance Retail Ventures, the company’s parent Reliance Industries said on Sept. 11. Reliance Retail is a subsidiary of Reliance Industries.

Persons: Mukesh Ambani, Thakore, Singapore’s GIC, Bernstein, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Reliance Industries, KKR, Abraham, Qatar Investment, U.S, Reliance Retail, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Reliance, HK, India’s Reliance Industries, Reliance Retail Ventures, Thomson Locations: MUMBAI, Qatar, Abu Dhabi, China, Singapore, Saudi Arabia

The private equity firm's follow-on investment translates into an additional equity stake of 0.25% in Reliance Retail on a fully-diluted basis, taking KKR's total equity stake in the Indian company to 1.42%, the retailer said in a statement on Monday. That year, KKR had invested 55.5 billion rupees ($669.65 million) in Reliance Retail. Morgan Stanley acted as financial adviser to Reliance Retail. Ambani said in 2019 that the group planned to list the retail business in five years. Reliance Retail reported a consolidated net profit of 91.81 billion rupees ($1.11 billion) for the financial year that ended in March 2023, on revenue of 2.6 trillion rupees.

Persons: Maggi, Niharika Kulkarni, Mukesh Ambani's, Jimmy Choo, Spencer, Pret, Ambani, Morgan Stanley, Aditya Kalra, Toby Chopra, Tomasz Janowski, Deepa Babington Organizations: REUTERS, KKR, Co Inc, Retail Ventures, Reliance, Reliance Retail, Saudi Public Investment Fund, General Atlantic, United Arab, Asian, IV, Reuters, Qatar Investment Authority, Unilever, Thomson Locations: Mumbai, India, DELHI, United Arab Emirates

☆ Abu Dhabi's Mubadala commits $1 billion to Blue Owl Capital's credit platform
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DUBAI, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi state fund Mubadala Investment Company has committed $1 billion to U.S.-based Blue Owl Capital's credit platform under a strategic partnership announced by the two companies on Monday. The investment will initially focus on providing financing for technology companies, Mubadala and Blue Owl said in a statement. Blue Owl is an alternative investment manager with $150 billion in assets under management. Private credit funds are increasingly competing with banks, including for financing large company buyouts. I would advise that for the next maybe one year, the credit space would be an interesting space to deploy some investment," al-Mahmoud said at the time.

Persons: Fabrizio Bocciardi, QIA, Mansoor Ebrahim Al, Mahmoud, al, Hadeel Al Sayegh, Susan Fenton Organizations: Mubadala Investment Company, Asia Pacific, Qatar Investment Authority, Thomson Locations: DUBAI, Abu Dhabi, North America, Europe, Asia

☆ India's Adani Group rejects OCCRP report it used 'opaque' funds to invest
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Indian billionaire Gautam Adani speaks during an inauguration ceremony after the Adani Group completed the purchase of Haifa Port earlier in January 2023, in Haifa port, Israel January 31, 2023. Adani Group said the 'misleading reports' had no substantial impact on the group's business performance, and said the group remained in compliance with the law. Nonprofit media organisation OCCRP reported on Thursday that millions of dollars were invested in publicly traded Adani Group stocks through funds in Mauritius, obscuring the involvement of alleged business partners of India's Adani family. The Adani Group, which is controlled by billionaire Gautam Adani, said it categorically rejected what it called recycled allegations in the OCCRP report "in their entirety". Shares in Adani Group companies dipped on Thursday amid renewed corporate governance concerns.

Persons: Gautam Adani, Amir Cohen, India's, Jyoti Narayan, Louise Heavens Organizations: Adani Group, Haifa Port, REUTERS, Adani, Qatar Investment Authority, GQG Partners, Nonprofit, Hindenburg Research, Thomson Locations: Haifa, Israel, Mauritius, Bengaluru

That implies a potential $2.5 billion investment will be equivalent to a 2.5% stake in the company. "Several marquee global strategic and financial investors have shown strong interest in Reliance Retail. Ambani said in 2019 that the group planned to list the retail business in five years. Reliance Retail has more than 18,000 retail outlets, but also a growing e-commerce operation where it competes with the likes of Amazon (AMZN.O) and Walmart's (WMT.N) Flipkart. Reliance Retail reported a consolidated net profit of 91.81 billion Indian rupees ($1.11 billion) for the financial year that ended in March 2023, on revenue of 2.6 trillion rupees.

Persons: Ambani, Mukesh Ambani's, Reliance, Morgan Stanley, QIA, Ambani's, Isha Ambani, Aditya Kalra, Scott Murdoch, Sriram, Munsif Vengattil, Susan Fenton Organizations: Retail Ventures, Reuters, Qatar Investment Authority, India's, Burberry, Reliance, Reliance Retail, KKR, Saudi Public Investment Fund, General Atlantic, United Arab, Unilever, Thomson Locations: SYDNEY, Qatar, U.S, China, United Arab Emirates, New Delhi, Sydney, Mumbai

[1/2] Mukesh Ambani (R), Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, poses with (from 2nd R to L) wife Nita Ambani, children Isha Ambani, Anant Ambani, and Akash Ambani before addressing the company's annual general meeting in Mumbai, India July 21, 2017. With Mukesh Ambani in his late 60s, "the time is probably right ... "This is also an attempt by Mukesh Ambani to ensure the next generation of Ambani siblings stay close to one another and do not have any discord." He is already the chairman of Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited, the telecom arm of Reliance. Akash's twin sister Isha is driving the expansion of Reliance Retail into new categories and geographies, and is already a director on the boards of the retail unit, Reliance Retail Ventures, which houses the conglomerate's bets in India's brick-and-mortar and e-commerce industries.

Persons: Mukesh Ambani, Nita Ambani, Isha Ambani, Anant Ambani, Akash Ambani, Shailesh Andrade, Isha, Akash, Ambani, Anant, Arun Dasmahapatra, Dhirubhai Ambani, Mukesh, Anil, Nita, Munsif Vengattil, Aditya Kalra, Tom Hogue, Mark Potter Organizations: Reliance Industries, REUTERS, India's Reliance Industries Ltd, Monday, Reliance, Brown University, Meta, Infocomm, Reliance Retail, Reliance Retail Ventures, Qatar Investment Authority, Investors, giga, Thomson Locations: Mumbai, India, BENGALURU, Jio, Bengaluru

REUTERS/Niharika Kulkarni/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMUMBAI, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Reliance Industries' retail unit is attracting "strong interest" from other top investors after raising $1 billion from Qatar Investment Authority, its billionaire chairman Mukesh Ambani said on Monday. "Several marquee global strategic and financial investors have shown strong interest in Reliance Retail," he said, adding he would share progress about them "in due course". Ambani said in 2019 that the group planned to list the retail business in five years. Reliance also said on Monday that Ambani's three children, including Isha Ambani, will join the board of parent Reliance Industries. Reliance Retail has invested more than $10 billion in the last two years and opened 3,300 new stores last year, Isha Ambani said.

Persons: Niharika Kulkarni, Mukesh Ambani, Ambani, Ambani's, Isha, Tiffany, Reliance, Isha Ambani, Sriram, Aditya Kalra, Susan Fenton Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reliance Industries, Qatar Investment Authority, Reliance Retail, KKR, Silver Lake, TPG, Reliance, Burberry, Unilever, PepsiCo, Thomson Locations: Mumbai, India, Asia, Africa

☆ QIA picks stake in Ambani's Indian retail behemoth at $100 bln valuation
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Shopping trolleys are seen parked outside a Reliance supermarket in Mumbai, India, March 16, 2021. REUTERS/Niharika Kulkarni/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBENGALURU, Aug 23 (Reuters) - Qatar Investment Authority will invest 82.78 billion rupees ($1 billion) for about 1% stake in Reliance Retail Ventures, the retail arm of India's Reliance Industries (RELI.NS) valuing the company at $100 billion, the companies said on Wednesday. Headed by billionaire Mukesh Ambani's daughter Isha Ambani, Reliance Retail Ventures houses retail operations, including international partnerships and consumer goods business. Reliance Retail, a unit of Reliance Retail Ventures, was recently valued at $92 billion to $96 billion by two global consultants, a move that could signal an eventual initial public offering of the company. Reliance Retail is India's largest retailer and has been partnering with a slew of global brands to launch and expand their presence in India.

Persons: Niharika Kulkarni, Mukesh Ambani's, Isha Ambani, Andrew Mills, Savio D'Souza Organizations: Reliance, REUTERS, Rights, Qatar Investment, Reliance Retail Ventures, India's Reliance Industries, KKR, General Atlantic, Saudi Public Investment Fund, Sethuraman NR, Thomson Locations: Mumbai, India, Bengaluru, Qatar

☆ Media and entertainment companies are finding more investment from the Middle East, but it can come with controversy. Here are 11 of the most notable deals.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Insider broke down 11 top media companies with Middle Eastern backing or partnerships. Middle Eastern investment has poured into US media and entertainment, and US media companies have been eager recipients. Here's a rundown of 11 key Western media and entertainment companies, listed alphabetically, that have licensing and investment partnerships with Middle Eastern entities. Jimmy Finkelstein's news startup The Messenger has Middle Eastern funding via its acquisition of IMI-backed startup Grid, which is now shuttered. The North Road, Peter Chernin and Providence Equity's production roll-up, took a $150 million investment in January from the Qatar Investment Authority, Qatar's main investment vehicle, to support its expansion.

Persons: Peter Chernin, Jeff Zucker, Uber, Jamal Khashoggi's, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, —, hasn't, Mohammed bin Salman, SRMG, Abu, Abu Dhabi's, Jimmy Finkelstein's, BeIn, Stone, Ian Orefice, WBD Organizations: Providence, North, IMI, ex, CNN, Public Investment Fund, Blackstone, Washington Post, Saudi Crown, Saudi, Guardian, Media, Bloomberg Media, Saudi Research, Media Group, Media Investments, CNN Business, Abu Dhabi Media Investment Corporation, Sky News Arabia, Business, Independent, SRMG, Miramax, BeIn, Paramount, Qatar Investment Authority, Penske Media Corporation, Billboard, Variety, Penske, Vox Media, New York, Billboard Arabia, RedBird Capital, Mideast, MBC Group, MBC, Fortress Investment Group, Investment, Warner Bros Locations: Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, West, Saudi, Abu Dhabi, ViacomCBS, SRMG

☆ BioXcel to cut over 50% of jobs as it pivots focus to agitation drug
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Companies BioXcel Therapeutics Inc FollowAug 14 (Reuters) - BioXcel Therapeutics Inc (BTAI.O) said on Monday it will reduce its workforce by more than 50% to 80 employees from about 190, as the drugmaker shifts its focus towards developing its agitation treatment. The drug, sold under the brand name Igalmi in the U.S., is already approved for use in hospital settings to treat agitation in adult patients with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. The company plans to reduce in-hospital commercialization expenses, and suspend trials that it no longer deems core to its business. With the job cuts, BioXcel aims to reduce more than 50% of its cash burn to about $80 million on a go-forward annualized basis. Its cash and cash equivalents totaled to $127.5 million as of June 30, compared with $165.5 million as of March 31.

Persons: Sriparna Roy, Krishna Chandra Organizations: BioXcel Therapeutics, BioXcel Therapeutics Inc, Oaktree Fund Administration, Qatar Investment Authority, Thomson Locations: U.S, Bengaluru

☆ Goldman Sachs-backed digital bank Starling to expand in hotly competitive Asia-Pacific market
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

British digital bank Starling is planning its first expansion outside of Europe, targeting a move into Asia-Pacific, CNBC has learned. However, Drewett said the bank Starling is partnering would use the company's software to launch small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) accounts, rather than to provide personal banking services. "It's a different proof point for us: one in Europe, one in Asia-Pacific," Drewett told CNBC in an interview Thursday. Engine is a technology platform that Starling launched in March 2022 and licenses out to other financial technology firms and large banks. Starling is using its Engine core banking platform as a launchpad for international expansion.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Nick Drewett, Starling, Drewett, Anne Boden, Boden, Statista Organizations: CNBC, Qatar Investment Partners, Fidelity Management, Research Company Locations: Europe, Asia, Pacific, Irish, U.K, Qatar

Media and entertainment deal-making has slowed, but private equity players are still betting big on the space. Middle Eastern sources are still providing funding to media, which could fuel deals in the months ahead. Media deal volume has actually increased, just not as fast; PwC recorded media deals rose 3% (to 326) in the six months through May, down from a 7% increase in the previous six months. And beyond private equity, legacy players could shed properties they consider non-core: Paramount is trying to offload BET while Warner Bros. Insider's list of top private equity players in media and entertainment highlights 17 firms, from heavy hitters to smaller upstarts, based on our reporting and conversations with investors and insiders.

Persons: PwC, Hollywood —, Ryan, Morgan Stanley, Sherrese Clarke Soares Organizations: Media, Hollywood, RedBird Capital Partners, NFL, Company, Qatar Investment Authority, Yahoo, ESPN, Paramount, BET, Warner Bros, Discovery, Equity Partners Locations: Providence, BlackRock

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