Shuaa is feeling lucky

Shuaa is feeling lucky

Investment bank bets on growth as economic wheel continues to spin.

January 10, 2011 2:01 by Samuel Potter

If you’re looking for general reassurance about things, you’re in the wrong place. Seriously, Kipp is not renowned for being a positive ray of light in the chaos and carnage otherwise known as the Middle East business scene. For “everything is lovely” spiel you are better off at another website.

No, our thing is being downbeat and cynical. But… wait, what’s this? Some good news? Well… we’re not sure what to say.

Shuaa Capital, the largest domestic investment bank in the UAE, is expanding its brokerage. According to the National, as other brokerages and share dealers buckle and crumble and collapse under the weight of it all, this one is ready to expand. Who says it’s all doom and gloom?

According to the paper, the firm has been busy selling off stakes acquired in companies during the boom and focusing on stable fee-generating businesses; in fact Gulf News says the company is now poised for strong growth. Next it intends to invest further in its brokerage arm so it can nab customers as struggling rivals wind down.

Alright, so a firm planning to cannibalize the customers of its failed rivals is not exactly unbridled good news. But the point is, Shuaa is a big trader and this play is based on us being near to recovery. The company clearly believes there will be a growth in trading volumes this year – and that little extra confidence is really good news.

Unfortunately, it’s also a bit of a gamble. Shuaa is not immune to the lack of action currently in the exchanges, and it has had a hard couple of years, like many of those rivals that have been sinking without trace. The Dubai based trader lost AED 948.5 million in 2008, and 529.8 in 2009. In 2010, it clawed its way back to breakeven levels.

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