On the air in Dubai and glad to share

Eve Jaso is a breakfast radio presenter on 104.8 Channel 4 Dubai. Half Iraqi and Polish but brought up in the UK, Eve, 31, has been on air for the past eight years across the UK and UAE. Having lived in Dubai for two years, the radio host has worked her way up the ladder from the midmorning show to drive time earlier this year before securing the prime-time position of breakfast presenter on 4Breakfast in April.

Describe your financial journey so far?

Coming from an Arabic upbringing, I credit my father for the valuable lessons he taught me regarding my finances. He drummed it into me from a very young age to secure my future for myself and rely on no one for support. By not giving me pocket money or paying for everything, he made me very independent and encouraged me to own my own home (which I did at the age of 25) and always have a full-time job. I earned a living straight after high school and worked my way up the administration ladder to support my dream job in radio. I was an executive PA for Sky TV in the UK, while still pushing a radio career alongside my day job. It paid off in the end, because after selling my dream car (a Mercedes SLK), it funded my new journey here in the UAE doing what I love – working in radio. I took the lump sum I made from the car sale and used it to pay for my flight to Dubai and cover my hotel stay and food bills until I could get an apartment. It then covered the cost of my flat cheques and rental car, until I could sort a full-time job. The money lasted three months and I used it to get me through the rough times without a job.

Are you a spender or saver?

I am a saver. My plan is to save enough money to fund a charitable organisation of my own here in the UAE, or to assist a charity already up and running. I am a big believer in karma and wholeheartedly believe in the phrase: “If you are blessed, be a blessing to others”. So if life rewards me well, I want to give back to those in need.

What is your philosophy towards money?

Money can be the root of all evil, because humans do quite crazy things to achieve it. But on the flip side it can also bring you a lot of happiness, when used wisely. Therefore work hard to achieve it, but remember we can’t take it with us at the end, so give back as much as possible and use it to make others smile.

Have you made any financial mistakes along the way?

The biggest mistake I ever made was being too nice and trusting someone who took my kindness and abused it. I loaned someone money in their time of need, which they promised to pay me back and unfortunately they did a runner and never did.

If you won Dh1 million, what would you do with it?

Firstly I would secure my mum and dad with a home so they can rest happily for their later years. I would then set up my own charity here in Dubai and make it a global initiative to help those less fortunate. I would love to be able to have an organisation that can target world issues, like assisting kids, orphans, all disabilities, labourers, homelessness, starvation, animals and my list goes on ... A sanctuary and a home for all those in need.

What has been your biggest financial lesson?

Save a small percentage of your wages every month, put it aside and forget about it. You never know when that money might come in handy. I learnt that lesson when paying rent and handing over huge cheques in Dubai. It helped having that little extra cash.

What do you enjoy spending money on?

Food. A lot of my wages goes on enjoying little food treats and I always have to share my food delights, like cheese bread or cookies with my team. Or I like to splash out on treats for my cat.

ahaine@thenational.ae

Leap of Faith

Michael J Mazarr

Public Affairs

Dh67

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

On the air in Dubai and glad to share

Breakfast radio presenter Eve Jaso sold her dream car – a Mercedes SLK – to fund her new life and new career in Dubai.