RAYMOND

MOSACO Group, a leading textile wholesale and retail business corporation, felicitated Gautam Hari Singhania, chairman and managing director, Raymond Ltd., on his maiden visit to Riyadh recently. MOSACO is a major overseas partner of Raymond as they started their business association in 1991 with textile and fabrics and opened their first retail outlet, The Raymond Shop (TRS), in 1996 at Batha, in the capital, according to Mohamed Saied Malibari, MD, MOSACO Group. The TRS network currently has a strong presence in Al-Rashid Mall, Alkhobar, and Al-Rashid Mega Mall in Madinah, besides TRS stores in Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Khamis Mushayt. MOSACO group opened Raymond first overseas flagship store on Dec. 1, 2008, at Olaya Street, Riyadh. Also, MOSACO introduced Raymond’s “Made to Measure” services for the discerning customers in the flagship store at Riyadh. Gautam Hari Singhania, CMD, Raymond Ltd., said: “The name Raymond evokes imagery of four values tightly woven into a cohesive whole — tyrust, excellence, quality and leadership.”

ETIHAD

Etihad Airways, in collaboration with the Australian Embassy in Riyadh, is raising funds for the victims of the Australian bushfires. To help with the fund collection Etihad has donated a return ticket to Sydney to the Australian Embassy who will use the ticket as an incentive for giving donation. “The level of destruction that was caused by the bushfires was devastating. Etihad wants to do its part and make a positive contribution toward helping in the reconstruction of the lives of the bushfire victims,” said Hossam Alasiri, Etihad GM for Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. Total funds along with the Etihad ticket winner will be announced on March 11.

QATAR AIRWAYS

Qatar Airways is nearing the 70 aircraft mark following the addition of the latest Boeing 777-300 Extended Range, which has arrived in Doha. The new commercial passenger jet is the third Boeing 777 delivery in four weeks and brings the total number in the national carrier’s fleet to 68 Boeing and Airbus aircraft. In the course of the last two years, a massive expansion program implemented at the airline has seen Qatar Airways increase its route network and aircraft numbers by around 25 percent, with passenger numbers growing an average of 35 percent year on year for the past decade. The expansion has also meant further extensions of Doha International Airport to cope with the increasing volumes of traffic generated by Qatar Airways rapid growth. The airline is due to move to its new home, New Doha International Airport, in 2012.

BMI

bmi, a business airline, has been awarded “Best Card Benefits Program” of the Year at the 2009 Card Awards. The prize was awarded for the bmi American Express Credit Card and recognizes the airline’s commitment to providing outstanding benefits and value to its customers. The card was also shortlisted in two more categories for the “Best New Credit Card Product of the Year” and “Best Affinity or Co-branded Credit Card Program.” Judged by a panel of industry experts, the card awards recognize customer service, excellence and innovation in the UK and Irish card payments industry. bmi launched the bmi American Express Credit Card with Bank of America to offer customers a compelling and prestigious card, which would incorporate bmi’s Diamond Club, the UK’s most generous frequent flyer program. Cardholders are automatically enrolled into Diamond Club, giving them the chance to earn destinations miles every time they spend using the card.

LAGONDA

Aston Martin has announced the return of Lagonda, described as one of the oldest and most iconic names in luxury car manufacturing. The revival of Lagonda fulfils a long-term vision and will bring performance luxury into new markets and territories around the world for Aston Martin Lagonda. Ultimately, Lagonda will be a strong presence in 100 global territories, vastly increasing the global brand reach of the company and extending to new customers. Reflecting its remarkable history, the brand will return to Russia, enter emerging markets in the Middle East, South America, India and China, as well as responding to demand from the dynamic, innovation-focused consumers of Europe, North America and the Far East. “The Lagonda is the luxury car of the future,” says Aston Martin Lagonda Chief Executive Dr. Ulrich Bez. “It is a combination of total usability, a new form and innovative new technology and materials,” he added.

UNICORN

The sale of UAE cement company Orimix Concrete Products LLC (Orimix) by Bahrain-based Unicorn Investment Bank (Unicorn) has been named the “Islamic Finance Deal of the Year” by pre-eminent international financial magazine Euromoney. In citing the transaction, Euromoney noted the outstanding return to investors achieved by the Unicorn Global Private Equity Fund I upon its exit from the transaction following a holding period of under two years. The fund acquired a controlling stake in Orimix in November 2006 for a price of $17.2 million and sold it in February 2008 for $44.9 million to Al-Safat Investment Company, a Kuwait listed investment group. This represented a return on capital of 160 percent and an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 98 percent.

JADWA

The investment made by Jadwa and its partners in a 30 percent stake in Lubricating Oil Refining Company (Luberef) has been named “Most Innovative Islamic Finance Deal of the Year 2008” by pre-eminent international finance magazine Euromoney in the 7th Annual Euromoney Islamic Finance Awards 2009, held recently in London. Ahmed Al-Khateeb, MD and CEO of Jadwa Investment, said: “We thank God for this achievement and we are honored to receive this award which comes as a result of the efforts of my skillful and experiences colleagues in Jadwa, making our wins of the deal and award a possibility. And this achievement is proof of our abilities and motivates me and my colleagues to do more in our march to the ultimate goal we strive for “becoming the leading provider of Islamic investment services in the region.”

ASAS PAN GULF

ASAS Pan Gulf for Real Estate Investment setforth the second international competition of the best architectural design for a luxury apartments project at the plot of Al-Shubaily High Rise. Several engineering consulting offices from different countries will participate in the competition. Through this tendency, the company is aiming at uprising the technical standard of the construction type for the different projects, which embodied the beauty of the city. The design should be emerged from the Arabic identity and cultural heritage of the Arab Gulf Region, besides the compliance with the specifications and applicable environmental requirements. Furthermore, to find out the engineering solutions in the light of the society needs within the comprehensive concept regarding the structural arrangement of the city in consideration of the available possibilities and society limitations. This trend has received a welcome and appreciation across the company lunching the first competition of the best design for a five-star hotel (sea front) in Alkhobar.

SHB

Saudi Hollandi Bank (SHB) was recently honored by Islamic Finance News at an awards ceremony in Dubai, winning the “Equity Deal of the Year” award for its recent SR775 million Sukuk deal. This was the first Tier II capital issuance in the Islamic space in the Middle East. The issue is Mudarabah-based, and generates an expected yield for the investors of SIBOR plus 200 basis points with a step-up in the yield after five years. The money raised through the Sukuk will be exclusively invested in the Islamic banking and finance portfolio of the bank. The lead manager and book runner of the deal was Saudi Hollandi Capital. An Islamic Finance News spokesman said: “This is one of the first quasi equity deals in the Islamic space. We feel that this important landmark trumps the other excellent deals which were submitted this year.” Bernd van Linder, SHB’s treasurer, and Kamal Mian, SHB’s head of Islamic banking, collected the award on SHB’s behalf. Linder said: “The success of our Sukuk issue is further proof of the strength of Saudi Hollandi’s franchise and the resilience of the Saudi economy and markets.”

SABB

SABB employees participated for the second time in the “One million cleanup campaign” initiated by the hygiene department of Riyadh Municipality, to clean one million square meters at Al-Thumamah area in the capital. This participation comes after the success achieved by SABB in the previous campaign. This drive comes under SABB’s community programs. The bank will also continue to participate in the later stages of the campaign through the active participation of its employees to clean one million square meters in Dirab area south of Riyadh. Ibrahim Abo-Mouti, head of corporate communications at SABB, said: “The bank’s participation in this drive, comes from its deep rooted belief in the aims of such campaigns, which goes along with our strategy to improve and enhance the environment in which we live. It also highlights the bank’s role as a friend of the environment, and to support the efforts exerted in this regard, in addition to participating in community awareness program to highlight the importance of caring for the environment.