Finance Monthly April 2019 Edition

Company underwent comprehensive restructuring and embedded the institutional aspect in all of its businesses while setting clear goals with the efforts of the company’s board of directors and the executives. The company’s direction and performance improved as a result. Thereafter, Al Safat saw three consecutive years of profits due to the restructuring initiatives of Abdullah, the senior management and other departments. Al Safat Investment is an ideal example of how teamwork could yield impressive results. The Chairman strongly believes in teamwork and encourages all departments to work together. Battling all fronts, he has put in efforts to establish a gender-equal atmosphere in the company by hiring qualified women to fill roles in the human resources and other departments of investments. His initiatives are not only beneficial for the bottom line, but they are also in tandem with his ethics and strong beliefs in Corporate Social Responsibility. Last year, for example, the company carried out a very successful Ramadan event with all employees and management personally visiting the group’s subsidiaries and distributing food packages to the labourers who work for the companies. Al Safat Investment Company was founded in 1983 and has grown rapidly since then. All investments and financial services held or offered by Al Safat are in accordance with the highest standards of Islamic Shariah compliance, which is supervised by a CMA- Certified Islamic finance consultancy company. The company invests in real estate, financial, healthcare, industrial, energy and other economic sectors through participation in the establishment of specialised companies or purchase of stocks and bonds in these companies, or by the management of projects in various sectors. The company is about to establish a mass investment system capable of generating substantial revenues, to be allocated for venture capital. In addition, the latter will target the investment with some strategic shares in many Kuwaiti startup companies. Part of AlTerkait’s vision for Al Safat’s future is to be involved in SMEs and to support young entrepreneurs. The Chairman strongly believes that leaders should support the next generation of leaders in the business world and promote a good relationship between corporate and small businesses. Kuwait’s 2035 vision plans to attract KD 400million to various sectors including petrochemicals, information technology, services, and renewable energy. The country plans to promote an atmosphere that enables SMEs to participate in the nation’s economic development. The National Fund for Small and Medium Enterprise Development is one of the country’s key initiatives tasked with enabling the private sector to drive growth. With nearly 80% of the population still employed in the government sector, there has been a rise in young entrepreneurs and startups. Through Al Safat, AlTerkait would like to support these small businesses by offering financial advice and services and possibly a co-working space for those who work from home or coffee shops. He hopes his initiatives will help pave the way for a better future for the economy of Kuwait, while being in line with the vision of His Highness, Emir of Kuwait, to transform Kuwait into a financial hub. While supporting startups, the Chairman will also be personally looking into investment opportunities for the company, in SMEs that stand out, particularly in the innovation and tech space. 2018 had some noticeable developments in the investment activities area at both local and regional levels. This targeted the startups, tech companies and VC funds resulting in a significant rise in investment deals. The Middle East and North Africa region managed to conclude 366 deals with a total investment of USD893 million, subject to the indication of some independent statistics concerned with following up the activities of venture capital. Subsequently, there was also a notable rise in Mergers and Acquisitions declared by the commercial entities and multiple sectors. AlTerkait predicts that 2019 will witness the same trending rise of such deals, in addition to the notable growth of the investment funds and the finance sector 14 www.finance-monthly.com EXECUTIVE INSIGHT - AL SAFAT INVESTMENT