Albilad/SITC
Albilad Company for Investment, the investment reach of Bank Albilad, has signed an agreement with Saudi Integrated Telecom Company (SITC) whereby the former acts as the financial consultant, IPO manager and coverage entrepreneur for the initial public offering (IPO) of SITC, which was awarded the second license for fixed telephone service in the Kingdom. It will announce 25 percent of its capital, SR250 million of its total SR1 billion, for IPO at a par value of SR10 per share. Abdul Rahman M. Al-Issa, CEO, Albilad for Investment, and Mohammad Al-Sanousi, SITC representative, signed the agreement. Al-Issa expressed his deep appreciation for SITC Management for their confidence in selecting Albilad for Investment as their Financial Consultant, IPO manager and Coverage entrepreneur. He reaffirmed the capabilities of Albilad for Investment to handle the IPO professionally using a qualified team with experience acquired from similar recent appointments. Al-Sanousi said that the agreement is aimed at satisfying objectives of the government and the company in giving opportunity to citizens to participate in the anticipated success of the company. By virtue of this IPO, SITC also aims at broadening its customer base and acquiring its market share in the communications and IT sector.
Kalimat
Kalimat, Iraq’s National 3.5 G Telecom Network has been launched successfully amid much fanfare with a rewarding promotional campaign. It is the first 3.5 G telecom network in the country and ushers Iraq into the most modern era of telecom. Kalimat Telecom plans to deploy a future-proof network utilizing a diverse range of networking products to its customers. With a vast experience in the telecommunication industry, Kalimat is determined to deliver a robust, powerful, and efficient CDMA Rev A WLL network, combined with the latest WiMAX technology, which will enable offering its customers one of the best state-of-the-art networks in the world. Equipped with a large array of products and services, Kalimat promises to introduce that latest of telecom technologies to Iraq’s corporate world and residences. “We are now officially under way and raring to take on the future through Iraq’s telecommunication requirements,” said Wilson Varghese, president and CEO of Kalimat Telecom. With Kalimat, Iraq is witnessing a full-scale deployment of fixed wireless technology across the country, not just in urban clusters, but in remote areas as well,” he added. Immediately after the commercial launch, the sales of the Kalimat telecom lines took off.
Samsung/UMG
Samsung Electronics, a world leader in the digital television market, and its sole distributor in the Kingdom, United Matbouli Group (UMG), launched their latest line-up of full HD LCD and PDP televisions at a media conference in Jeddah on Wednesday night. The new range, Series 4, 5 and 6, are specifically designed for consumers new to HD entertainment. “Samsung’s newest LCD technologies and engineering techniques have allowed us to offer “attractive HD and ‘Full HD’ TVs with great features and excellent picture quality,” said Omar Siddiqui, AV Product Manager, Samsung Electronics Saudi Arabia. “With the LCD HDTV Series 4 and full HDTV Series 5 and 6, every customer can enjoy a premium high-definition experience.” Combining elegant styling with a wide range of higher-end components ordinarily exclusive to premium sets, consumers can now experience superb picture quality, optimized digital performance, and ease-of-use in an HDTV that fits seamlessly into any home decor. “Everything from the LCD panel and chassis construction down to input accessibility and the remote control are specifically engineered to provide an incredible HD entertainment experience,” added Mohammad Asad Ali, business unit manager, UMG. “Consumers will also find an easy-to-navigate interface with settings to instantly give you the best picture and sound at the press of a button.”
GulfMerger/Euromoney
Kuwait-based GulfMerger, an independent financial and investment advisory firm, was yesterday presented with the prestigious “Best Merger & Acquisition House in Kuwait” award by Euromoney magazine. As the only specialized M&A boutique in Kuwait, GulfMerger has managed to successfully advise on six separate M&A deals within a period spanning from April 2007 to March 2008. This represents the largest number of M&A deals ever executed by a financial services institution in Kuwait. “We are delighted and honored to have received this award which we believe is a testament to our strategic focus on M&A-related activities, our extensive experience in this field as well as our ability to offer the highest standards of service and professionalism to our clients in the region. The most notable of the six deals was the sale of 51 percent of equity interest in the publicly traded Hilal Cement Company, Kuwait’s third largest cement company, to the world’s fifth largest cement company Italcementi for $46 million. This was a landmark deal where for the first time in Kuwait a global company acquired a controlling interest in a local, publicly traded company.
Marriott Hotels
The Marriott Business Council in Dubai has announced an innovative partnership aimed at bringing business, hotel guests, the UAE Red Crescent Authority and the United Nations together to help raise funds to combat hunger. Five Marriott hotels across Dubai will call on guests and visitors to voluntarily add AED5 (about $1.40) to their room or restaurant bills, enough to feed a child in school for a week. The money will be donated to the UAE Red Crescent Authority and the UN World Food Program (WFP), allowing WFP to provide school meals to many of the 59 million children around the world who attend school hungry every day. “Giving a child a meal is one of the best things you can do at this time of high food prices,” said Mario Fetz, WFP’s director of private donor relations, noting that high commodity and fuel prices coupled with an increase in natural disasters threaten to wipe out gains made against hunger in recent years. “We particularly appreciate this valuable contribution to our school feeding program and commend Marriott for its commitment to ending hunger,” Fetz said. The five hotels taking part in the ‘Spirit to Serve the Hungry’ campaign are the JW Marriott Dubai, Renaissance Dubai Hotel, Marriott Executive Apartments Dubai Creek, Courtyard by Marriott Green Community and Marriott Executive Apartments Green Community. They have set a goal of feeding 100,000 of the most vulnerable children in school by the end of the year, through their own generosity and that of their patrons.
Autodesk
Qatar’s construction sector is set to reach $9.06 billion by 2012, according to studies conducted by Business Monitor, and with over 800 new towers slated to go up in Doha over the next 10 years, the market has been identified as one of the busiest construction areas in the world. In line with this, Autodesk, a world leader in 2D and 3D design software for the manufacturing, building, and media and entertainment markets, has named ProMedia as its new value added reseller in Qatar. At present, ProMedia is undertaking major strides to effectively market Autodesk solutions amid the country’s booming construction sector.
As the Government of Qatar continues to strengthen its sustainable design initiatives in the construction sector, Autodesk and ProMedia are poised to highlight the outstanding features of the new Autodesk Revit solutions and AutoCAD 2009 software to both government agencies and private developers. Designed for Building Information Modeling (BIM), the Revit solutions consist of Revit Architecture, Revit Structure and Revit MEP, which enable testing and analysis of new and better materials, while considerably reducing waste production. “As we seek a stronger presence in the region, we have made a decision to add ProMedia into our pool of resellers,” said Manish Bhardwaj, field marketing specialist, Autodesk, Middle East.
Bupa Arabia
Bupa Arabia, a major health care insurer in Saudi Arabia, has taken home for the second time the prestigious E-Business honors in the region’s premier insurance award, the Middle East 2008 Insurance Awards, held recently in Dubai. Bupa won the award for its simple but effective use of SMS service called Msg.Bupa to empower its members to receive better and faster service from Bupa providers by giving them up-to-date information through short messaging service (SMS). According to the board of jurors, composed of independent experts from leading companies around the world, Msg.Bupa was an effective medium by which Bupa communicated real-time information to members at point of service, thereby arming them with the right information at the right time to demand and receive on time service. The award received by Bupa Arabia highlights the company’s commitment to the technological development needed to cope with the rapid growth of medical insurance industry in the Kingdom. It also emphasizes Bupa’s leading role in introducing new services with the use of technology to better serve its members. Bupa first won the E-Business award in 2006 for its pioneering online services.
Sherwoods
Sherwoods Independent Property Consultants has announced that it will conduct a two-day road show featuring various real estate investment opportunities now available in Abu Dhabi, with the combined value of projects exceeding AED1 billion. Kicking off tomorrow at the Le Meridien Hotel Abu Dhabi and concluding in Dubai on Sunday at the Westin Hotel, the “Abu Dhabi Road Show” will likewise highlight the investment potential and the defining factors that have helped shape Abu Dhabi’s growing reputation as a fast-emerging property haven. With a diverse range of property investors and buyers expected at the event, Sherwoods has lined up its centerpiece presentation showcasing top choices in the Abu Dhabi property market. Parallel exhibits will also feature the company’s equally exciting projects in Dubai and internationally. Iseeb Rehman, MD, Sherwoods, said: “This is a great opportunity for the public to have an exclusive and more detailed look at the growing prospects on offer in the UAE capital’s booming real estate sector. Sherwoods will leverage its two decades of experience as a market leader to meet the distinct requirements of our diverse customers.”
SQC
The Saudi Arabian Quality Council (SQC) has welcomed TQM Consulting Group, Inc., as its first corporate member (golden) from outside the Kingdom. After Zurich-based TQM Consulting Group (TQMCG) held its EFQM European Assessor Training in Jeddah, Dr. Omar Kabli, executive officer of the SQC, presented Dr. Karl J. Koller, CEO and president of TQMCG, the member certification plate. The plate is signed by Dr. Ayed T. Al-Amri, director of the SQC. TQMCG, together with the Swiss Institute for Total Quality Management (ITQM), are providing quality management training and consulting, particularly in business excellence, in the Gulf region. TQMCG is a licensed partner of the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) and is a corporate member of the Dubai Quality Group (DQG). According to Dr. Koller, “TQMCG and ITQM are dedicated to the ongoing development, advancement, and promotion of Business Excellence in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, we provide a wide range of quality management training events in Jeddah, Riyadh, and Dammam. All the training we have provided so far in Saudi Arabia has been very successful, and our customers have been very happy with the services we have provided.”