ADX Participates At The 5th City And GCC Conference

• The Exchange Offers Excellent Opportunities for Foreign Capital
• “Investments always seek opportunities, and ADX offers exceptional potentials,” Rashed Al Baloushi

Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) today participated in the 5th City and GCC Conference taking place at the Merchant Taylors’ Hall in London, which aims at connecting the City of London and the Gulf region’s financial centres.

ADX’s Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Operations, Rashed Al Baloushi, represented the exchange at the event along with other prominent figures from the UAE and the region, where the Lord Mayor of the City of London, Alderman Nick Anstee, and the Commercial Secretary to HM Treasury, Lord Sassoon, delivered the opening speeches that emphasized the cooperation potentials between the City of London and the Gulf.

Al Baloushi participated in the keynote discussion about the rebuilding and restructuring of the capital markets in the Gulf through a presentation about the opportunities offered by ADX, as well as the Q and A session.

“ADX seeks strong presence in such international events, being at the heart of the financial developments of the region, and constantly aiming to increase the flow of foreign investments to the emirate and the country,” commented ADX’s Deputy Chief Executive.

“Among foreign investors at ADX, the UK remains to be the largest in terms of market value of owned shares, holding 27% of total foreign owned shares, less GCC and Arab, worth AED 5.15 billion in 2009, and the second largest in terms of trading value with buying and selling transactions amounting to 18% of the total value of foreign trading of AED 21.15 billion in the same year,” he explained.

“Such trend remained dominant during the first half of 2010, where the value of British transactions at ADX reached AED 3.55 billion; through buying and selling more than 2.13 billion shares, a substantial stake despite the global slowdown,” he added.

The conference discussed a number of significant issues including financing infrastructure and energy projects in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, asset management developments at the GCC, the region’s capital markets restructuring following the global downturn and improving the business environment and corporate transparency, with senior financial sector representatives from the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia participating.

“Regardless of the recent global financial crisis and its implications, investment has been and will always be seeking opportunities and ADX offers exceptional potentials capitalizing on the constant economic growth of Abu Dhabi and the UAE, as well as the ideal environment that includes tax-free and freedom of profit and capital repatriation advantages,” Al Baloushi explained.

“Hence, we are always confident that our message is comprehended by international investors, and that is the motivation for our global reach and activities,” he added.

In his presentation, Al Baloushi focused on the positive economic aspects for the UAE and Abu Dhabi, providing a comprehensive picture about the investment opportunities and potentials that remain to be among the most promising of all emerging and frontier markets.

“By providing participants with ADX’s track record for the past decade, we were only completing the fuller picture of economic growth and development in Abu Dhabi and the UAE,” Al Baloushi said.