(MENAFN- Qatar News Agency) Qatars objective of building a regional asset management hub has taken firm steps following the partnership with Barclays Natural Resource Investment (BNRI), Qatar Financial center Authority (QFCA) top executive, Shashank Srivastava said.
"Under the partnership with BNRI, QAMC will co-invest $250 million in BNRI s current and future portfolio companies and a substantial proportion will be allocated to BNRI s existing US$2.1 Billion portfolio of companies," Acting CEO and Chief Strategic Development Officer Srivastava told Qatar News Agency (QNA) in an exclusive interview.
"Our agreement with Barclays Natural Resource Investments (BNRI) is a major step forward in the development of the QFC as an asset management center," he added.
BNRI is a global private equity business and a subsidiary of Barclays (PLC), a leading British and global bank.
"We had announced the deal in April. It is a strategic partnership between The Qatar Asset Management Company (QAMC), itself a collaboration between the QFC Authority and the Qatar Investment Authority, and BNRI," Srivastava said.
"We regard this as a milestone achievement for the QFC Authority, he said, it testifies to Doha s development as a financial center and to the merits of our strategy of looking to attract not just local and regional firms but global players in the asset management industry. It is an important step forward in the development of Qatar s whole financial system not just the QFC," Srivastava added.
The QFC is a legal, tax and regulatory set up that contributes to one of the aims of the Qatar national vision 2030 which is to diversify the economy, he said.
The QFC offers local and foreign firms one of the most business-friendly tax environments in the world, a legal system based on English common law, efficient administration and one of the region s most robust regulatory regimes.
The QFC, recently decided put more emphasis on a hub strategy and now provides a uniquely sustainable platform for regional growth in financial services, particularly in Reinsurance, Captive Insurance and Asset Management.
Being the commercial arm of the QFC, the QFC Authority (QFCA) has worked closely with the QFC's regulatory authority (QFCRA) and other Qatari industry and regulatory bodies to ensure that the legal and regulatory environment continuously evolves to stay competitive.
Indeed, QFC s number of licensees reaffirms its progress towards building a favorable environment in which financial and financial-related businesses are thriving, Srivastava said "We have already attracted many leading international and local firms to obtain QFC licenses and, to date, 159 licenses have been issued,".
QFC s licensees include AXA Investment Managers, Credit Suisse, Barclays Capital/Barclays Natural Resource Investments, The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Deutsche Bank, Kane, Marsh, AON, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Standard Chartered and UBS, he said.
Also, many local and regional firms such as QNB Capital, Qatar First Investment Bank, Concordia Capital, Amwal and Matrix ME Alignment Fund have been licensed by QFC.
Some of the above mentioned finance companies are raising domestic and international investment, he said.
Investment should be seen in two ways: domestic, to build infrastructure and encourage local enterprises; and foreign, to accumulate long-term assets for the Qatari people and spread risk, he added.
Although foreign investment gets the publicity for example, Harrods, Volkswagen, the recent stake in Shell , there is also a very large commitment to domestic investment.
"An important point I should emphasize here is the boost infrastructure spending gives to the private sector," Srivastava said.
"The sheer scale of Qatar s public and private infrastructure and industrial investment is creating huge opportunities for the private sector," he added.
Major projects include the rail and metro system, the new airport and the causeway connecting Qatar and Bahrain.
Regarding Qatar s economy he said "We are very fortunate that Qatar boasts one of the world s most dynamic and rapidly growing economies," he said.
Truly, Qatar s rapidly growing economy comes from the long term schemes and plans the state has put to build a knowledge-based economy with a substantial and competitive private sector.
In conclusion about the success of QFC Authority Strategy Srivastava said "I believe our strategy is paying off. Global Investor magazine has ranked the QFC as the "Best Financial Centre in the Middle East,"and the Global competitiveness Report for 2011-12 of the World Economic Forum, which ranks Qatar as the most competitive country in the MENA region.
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