DIFC Family Wealth Centre (DFWC) and the Arab International Women’s Forum (AIWF) today convened business leaders from across the region at Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), the leading global financial centre in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region, for the ‘Women-Led Family Business in the Global Economy’ roundtable and networking event. The event, which took place as part of AIWF’s milestone 25th anniversary programme, examined the evolving role of women as leaders within family-owned enterprises across the region and in the global economy. Through this joint initiative, DFWC and AIWF highlighted the impact of women’s leadership on family business growth, sustainability and longevity. Discussions explored how greater representation of women on family business boards can strengthen governance, foster innovation and enhance long-term resilience as family businesses respond to AI and other shifts in the global economy. DFWC and AIWF are committed to supporting and promoting family enterprises. As MEASA’s largest family wealth ecosystem, DFWC supports family businesses and ultra-high-net-worth individuals with the expertise, services and structures needed to preserve and grow wealth across generations, with a focus on areas including succession planning and governance. DIFC’s family wealth ecosystem continues to expand rapidly, with 1,408 family business-related entities, up 36 per cent year-on-year, and 1,409 foundations, up 67 per cent. In the Gulf, family businesses contribute around 60 per cent of GDP and employ more than 80 per cent of the workforce. His Excellency Arif Amiri, Chief Executive Officer of DIFC Authority, welcomed key guests ahead of the event. In her opening remarks, Haifa Al Kaylani OBE, President and Founder of AIWF, reflected on AIWF’s 25 years of supporting women’s leadership in the private sector, family businesses and economies across the region. Abdullah Jefri, Division Director, GCC, International Finance Corporation, World Bank Group, delivered the Guest of Honour keynote. The event placed women’s leadership at the centre of discussions on how family businesses preserve their legacies, prepare successors and respond to new opportunities in the global economy. The first discussion, Women-Led Family Business: Leadership, Legacy and Transformation, examined how women lead established family enterprises while planning for change across generations. Moderated by Haifa Al Kaylani OBE, the panel welcomed HE Dr Raja Easa Al Gurg, Chairperson and Managing Director of Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group, UAE; HE Mona Al Moayyed, Managing Director of YK Almoayyed & Sons, Bahrain; and HE Lujaina Mohsin Darwish, Chairperson of Mohsin Haider Darwish LLC, Oman. The second discussion, Empowering the Next Generation of Women Leaders in Family Enterprise, explored the skills, support and opportunities that aspiring leaders need to thrive in family business structures. Moderated by Nilufer Gunhan, Senior Executive and Board Member of AIWF, the session brought together Basma Alzamil, Family Business Advisor at LGA Global, Saudi Arabia; Farida El Agamy, Attorney at Law and General Manager of Tharawat Family Business Forum, UAE; Nisha Jagtiani, Group Director and Board Member of Landmark Group, UAE; and Hanan Saab, Founder, Co-Owner and Managing Director of Pharmamed, Lebanon. During the event, DFWC launched the Women in Family Leadership and Governance Programme in collaboration with Hawkamah and AIWF, a landmark initiative aimed at advancing women's participation in family business governance and promoting greater representation of women on family and corporate boards. The programme forms part of DFWC's broader commitment to supporting family businesses with the knowledge, networks and governance capabilities needed to navigate succession and preserve wealth across generations, while empowering the next generation of leaders. Through specialised education, peer engagement, mentorship and practical governance insights, the initiative seeks to strengthen women's contributions to leadership, succession planning and strategic decision-making, helping to build more resilient, inclusive and future-ready family businesses across the region.

Veteran performing-arts administrator Gideon Arthurs’s hiring follows a period of intense restructuring at the cultural centre

Chinese agricultural producer Snow Valley has taken the first formal step toward entering the Kazakh market by registering a local entity, SnowValley Food Kazakhstan Group Holdings Ltd., within the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) on September 30. According to records highlighted by economist Arman Bataev and the Finmentor. kz channel, the company was incorporated with an initial share capital of $18. The entity is structured as a holding company with the mandate to engage in the processing and canning of potatoes. The shareholder of the new entity is Xuechuan Liupanshan Food (Ningxia) Co., Ltd., the production arm of the broader Snow Valley Agricultural Group. This move follows an agreement reached in April between the Chinese firm and the akimat (administration) of the Pavlodar region.

Financial Times: DigitalBridge CEO Marc Ganzi says his data center investment group will become SoftBank's “third-party infrastructure arm” after SoftBank's ~$4B takeover closed  —  DigitalBridge CEO Marc Ganzi says his data centre investment group will be SoftBank's ‘third-party infrastructure arm’ after $4bn takeover

Christoph Schär has been living in Argentina with his family for ten years.

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The Astana Times provides news and information from Kazakhstan and around the world. Central Asia is entering a new phase of economic development. Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are attracting rising international investment, regional capital markets are deepening, entrepreneurial wealth is accumulating, and a new generation of business owners is beginning to think seriously about succession, diversification and the preservation of family wealth. Yet one part of the region’s financial… The post Astana as Bridge: From Financial Centre to Family Office and Private-Capital Hub appeared first on The Astana Times.

The Gathering Place soup kitchen in North Bay has paid off its Canada Revenue Agency debt after two years of financial uncertainty. The board says bills are current, but it still owes some money. Rising food costs, record demand and warming centre expenses forced layoffs and scaled-back meals. Eric Taschner has the latest.

Simon Andriesz 💔 I start this post by tagging a dead man. Just two nights ago, Simon Andriesz tragically took his own life while staying at a trauma treatment centre. Why was he there? Years earlie...

(Kingston, Ontario) The City of Kingston is being asked to help the Kingston Racquet Centre (KRC) address its ongoing “financial pressures” by possibly buying the privately-run indoor courts and land,...

LAGOS, October 1 (Naija247news) — Nigeria is using its domestic government securities to support access to international dollar liquidity, creating a direct financial link between the country’s naira bond market and one of its largest recent external financing arrangements. The structure sits at the centre of Nigeria’s $5 billion total-return swap with First Abu Dhabi Bank, under which the government can access dollar funding against collateral consisting of naira-denominated Federal Government securities.

Staff are told Sunderland University is planning huge and permanent budget cuts by next year.

India’s Parliamentary Discourse on Environment since the Paris Agreement. This report examines the evolution of India’s legislative engagement with the climate crisis during the critical decade follow...

India’s Parliamentary Discourse on Environment since the Paris Agreement. This report examines the evolution of India’s legislative engagement with the climate crisis during the critical decade following the adoption of the Paris Agreement in December 2015. As the world’s largest democracy and one of the countries most vulnerable to extreme weather events, it is essential […]

(Kingston, Ontario) The City of Kingston is being asked to help the Kingston Racquet Centre (KRC) address its ongoing “financial pressures” by possibly buying the privately-run indoor courts and land,...