Good morning, friends, and welcome to the start of the final workweek in August. Brace yourselves for a lot more traffic as of today, as schools are back in session and others return from their vacations in cooler places to settle back into their normal routine.

We have a couple of big stories at home today, including Taqa’s latest USD 1.2 bn acquisition of a Madrid-based water treatment company, and Emirates NBD’s issuance of a Dim Sum bond. Plus: Spinneys is expanding into its fourth GCC market, Kuwait, through a JV with Alshaya Group, and Emirates Global Aluminum is officially done with Guinea.

WEATHER- Dubai will see daytime highs of 42°C and overnight lows of 32°C, while Abu Dhabi is set to reach 41°C, dipping to 32°C after dark.

HAPPENING TODAY-

UAE president in Angola: President Mohamed bin Zayed began a state visit to Angola yesterday, during which he will meet President João Lourenço to discuss strengthening economic and development ties, Wam reports.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- XRG-led consortium’s Santos bid gets a boost with exclusivity period extension: Australian oil and gas producer confirmed it has extended the due diligence and exclusivity period for the USD 18.7 bn bid from the consortium led by Adnoc’s international investment arm XRG to Friday, 19 September, according to a statement. The consortium — which also includes Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ and private equity firm Carlye — again confirmed it has not found anything in its due diligence that would prompt it to withdraw its bid.

The exclusivity period extension means that Santos cannot enter takeover talks with anyone whose bid matches or is lower than the consortium’s, though it can still do so for bids that are higher.

REMEMBER- The consortium said earlier this month that it would need at least another four weeks to secure regulatory approvals for the potential takeover. The acquisition requires approvals from several Australian regulators, including the Foreign Investment Review Board, which analysts have said could be critical of the acquisition given it involves critical energy infrastructure. It will also require approvals from the US and Papa New Guinea, because the firm holds assets in both of the countries.

#2- Lombard Odier to shut down Abu Dhabi operations: Swiss private bank Lombard Odier plans to shutter its offices in Abu Dhabi, a rare move as more financial firms pour into the capital, Bloomberg reports, citing a spokesperson from the firm. The independent banking group will reportedly continue to operate and serve its clients in Abu Dhabi from its neighboring base in Dubai, with Abu Dhabi staff set to relocate either to Dubai or Singapore. The firm had established its Abu Dhabi office in 2019.

No reason was cited for the exit, but it comes amid a surge of interest from hedge funds and global asset managers looking to expand their footprint in Abu Dhabi’s financial hub, ADGM. European banking giant UBS Group was recently reported to be planning an office in Abu Dhabi. Wealth management firm Azura Partners is also planning to relocate its headquarters from Monaco to Abu Dhabi, following its acquisition by Abu Dhabi-based alternative asset manager Lunate.

#3- Space42 eyes funding, local partnerships for Map Africa initiative: ADX-listed space tech firm Space42 is in early talks with potential backers — including the African Union Development Agency and financial firms — to raise funds for its Map Africa project, Bloomberg quotes CEO of Smart Solutions, a subsidiary of the firm, Hasan Al Hosani as saying. “There’s a lot of work that needs to happen locally within each country … to identify entities and partners, whether it’s on the private sector or the government sector,” he said.

Background: Launched with Microsoft and mapping software firm Esri last month, the initiative aims to chart all 54 African countries with detailed maps to support logistics, disaster response, and urban planning. It competes with Elon Musk’s Starlink, which already covers 18 African countries with a fleet of about 8k satellites.

How it’s going: Space42 currently operates eight satellites with plans to launch three more this year. The company already started building a presence in markets such as South Africa and Zimbabwe, where it connected schools and clinics, Al Hosani said.

DATA POINT-

The UAE is becoming an influencer hub: Creators HQ, the UAE’s new hub for digital content creators, has drawn over 2.4k active members from 147 countries since its launch at the 1 Bn Followers Summit in January, state news agency Wam reports. It has also brought in 78 global content companies from 24 countries to relocate to the UAE, led by companies from the UK, Pakistan, the US, India, France, and Germany. Collectively, members linked to the HQ command a following of more than 2.4 bn people across platforms.

Creators HQ? Launched under the Content Creators Fund, the hub aims to empower creators by hosting more than 300 events and workshops annually and offering services such as Golden Visa facilitation and company setup support. It is targeting 10k creators in its next phase.

PSA-

All property adverts within ADGM’s jurisdiction will require a license from the financial center, after it introduced a new real estate advertising permit, according to a press release. The service — launched in collaboration with the Registration Authority, the Department of Municipalities and Transport, and the Abu Dhabi Real Estate Center (Adrec) — aims to curb fake listings. The permit service is accessible through ADGM’s online platform, AccessRP.

Abu Dhabi has also been cracking down on fake property listings: The emirate also recently launched Madhmoun — the region’s first multiple listing service platform — to validate and regulate property listings.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

No one story is dominating the front pages this morning, as hotter, longer summers (yes, the summer is getting longer, the Washington Post says) are bringing business activity to a near halt.

HSBC’s Swiss private bank is reportedly offloading over 1k wealthy clients in the Middle East, spanning Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar and Egypt, unnamed sources told the Financial Times and Bloomberg. The move — expected to be completed within six months — comes amid scrutiny from Swiss watchdog Finma to ensure compliance with anti-money laundering regulations. HSBC is “evolving the strategic focus of our Swiss Private Bank” as part of its wider plans to “reshape the Group,” the bank said in an emailed statement to Bloomberg. This plan entails “increasing leadership and market share in the areas where we have a clear competitive advantage.”

ALSO- A mighty fall: China’s Evergrande — once the biggest real estate firm in the country — saw its shares delisted from the Hong Kong stock exchange early this morning. The giant developer, which was valued at USD 51 bn at its peak in 2018, was crushed under a pile of USD 300 bn in liabilities amid a wider property crisis that started in 2021 and saw homebuyers and investors incur hefty losses.

ALSO WORTH NOTING-

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The Spring/Summer edition of Dubai Fashion Week will run from Monday, 1 September until Saturday, 6 September at Dubai Design District (d3), ahead of the New York, London, Milan, and Paris fashion weeks. The edition will showcase more than 30 brands from the UAE, Europe, India, and beyond, with runway shows, private events, and an expanded buyers’ program.

The International Government Communication Forumis happening on Wednesday, 10 and Thursday, 11 September at Expo Center Sharjah. Hosted by the Sharjah Government Media Bureau (SGMB), the two-day forum will include panel discussions, workshops, and keynote speeches focused on using strategic communication to develop five global priorities: food security, public health, education, environmental sustainability, and green economy.

Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.

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