WEALTH & INVESTMENT
The GCC Perspective Faizal Bhana Director, Middle East, Africa and India and An Kelles Director, GCC, at Jersey Finance discuss todays’ appetites, requirements and the developing considerations of GCC based investors as newer generations come to the fore
Faizal Bhana, Director, Middle East, Africa and India, Jersey Finance
H
ave investment figures emanating from the GCC grown in recent years, both in terms of individual investors and size of commitments?
Faizal Bhana (FB): Jersey’s long-standing relationship with the GCC means that business flows have grown steadily, but also diversified. Jersey, for instance, has long been a centre for supporting private and family wealth strategies for families in the GCC. However, in recent years, we’ve seen a growing appetite to engage
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An Kelles, Director, GCC, Jersey Finance
in alternative funds – particularly real estate, private equity and infrastructure. A good example of that was the Jerseydomiciled Ethos Invest Fund – a £1bn fund that became the first Shari’a compliant tech focused private equity fund on launch last year.
What are the main factors motivating investors from the GCC to locate investments in nonregional IFCs?
FB: First, GCC investors are looking to diversify into new geographies, such as
Banking and Finance news in the MEA market
Europe and the US, and emerging sectors, such as alternative assets and digital assets. To do that, they need specialist expertise, the sort of expertise offered in other IFCs like Jersey. In addition, investors in the GCC look to other jurisdictions to avail themselves of the stability they offer, in particular in cases where their foremost objectives are asset protection and long-term succession and legacy planning. An Kelles (AK): Such requirements have further accelerated due to the impact of Covid whereby the ability to transact seamlessly remotely became imperative while the outlook towards investment priorities shifted further towards socially conscious principles. In most cases, strategies involving non-regional IFCs are complementary to their domestic arrangements.
Do investors from the Middle East into IFCs such as Jersey, request any unique investment requirements or trends, distinguishing them from those from other regions?
FB: With an estimated $1 trillion in assets expected to be transferred between generations globally in the coming decade, it is fair to say that one distinct trend we are seeing is a shift in attitudes and priorities as the Nextgen comes to the fore. This assertion was recently borne out in a study we commissioned, ‘Global Attitudes to Islamic Wealth Management’ which set out to understand the views of Muslim family offices and high net worth individuals on Shari’a compliant and ethical wealth management services. That report highlighted that while fundamental principles such as philanthropy remain incredibly important,
