Abu Dhabi, Riyadh compete to lure global finance giants

Bloomberg highlights UAE-Saudi finance rivalry: The competition between Abu Dhabi and Riyadh to attract global financial giants is heating up, with firms like BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, and Barclays splitting operations between the two cities. Bloomberg reports that Abu Dhabi’s strategy centers on leveraging assets — like energy wealth and infrastructure — for a post-oil future, while Riyadh, backed by a young population, is pushing to localize operations as part of a broader privatization push.

Bloomberg also looked at a handful of Indian tycoons who found success in the UAE, including Lulu Group’s Yusuff Ali, tracking his rise to become the UAE’s second-wealthiest private individual. The feature spotlighted his journey from a single Abu Dhabi grocery store in the 1970s to Lulu Retail’s USD 1.7 bn IPO, the largest in the UAE this year. Bloomberg also examined GEMS Education owner Sunny Varkey, who sold a USD 2 bn majority stake to Brookfield, and discussed challenges faced by foreign-born tycoons in amassing wealth in the UAE.