Giggs still has a spring in his step

In less than a month Ryan Giggs will mark the 18th anniversary of his league debut for Manchester United. Everton were 2-0 victors at Old Trafford when the skinny winger replaced Denis Irwin. United were not kings back then, finishing sixth in 1991, but it was the introduction of a player who has since made a huge impact on their fortunes and become synonamous with their success.

Quick feet to take him past two players against West Ham on Sunday, and then a cool finish to score the only goal of the game, was a flashback to old times as the Welshman put United back on top of the table. This is the 17th successive season in which the winger, 35, has scored. That is a remarkable feat. and a record 11th title remains within reach. His effort rightly gained admirers from all quarters, including the record-breaking Edwin van der Sar.

Another blankout made it 13 straight clean sheets and 1,212 minutes since he last conceded a goal, breaking the British mark set by the Aberdeen stalwart Bobby Clark in 1971. But van der Sar knows how crucial the winner was from Giggs, breaking down a steely Hammers side and moving United two points clear of Liverpool with a game in hand. "Ryan probably doesn't play as many games as he wants to, but every time he comes in he does a job. No, he does more than that. He keeps putting in performances as if he was still 24 or 25," he said.

Sir Alex Ferguson has talked about another year for Giggs when his contract ends in the summer, but if another league crown is sealed it might be fitting to end on a high. Gianfranco Zola, the West Ham manager, knows how hard it is to give up. The Italian retired from playing just before his 39th birthday. "When I was at his age, I just didn't want to give up," he said. "I wanted to get better and better. That's why I played for more years. Looking at him, he has the same desire."

The Liverpool manager, Rafa Benitez, has said experience could be the key in this season's championship race and United are way ahead on that front. In Giggs, van der Sar, 38, and Paul Scholes, 34, they have wise heads and proven winners. Jose Mourinho, the Inter Milan coach, was at the game to meet up with his former Chelsea assistant Steve Clarke, now at West Ham. He must be worried about his side taking on United in the last 16 of the Champions League, with a quadruple still in sight for Ferguson's men.

Mike Phelan, the United assistant, said: "Everybody wants the four trophies. "It is difficult and we are just happy to be getting nearer to the finishing line in every competition: the club has been built to sustain challenges in four competitions." akhan@thenational.ae

The specs

Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors

Power: 480kW

Torque: 850Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)

On sale: Now

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

About Proto21

Date started: May 2018
Founder: Pir Arkam
Based: Dubai
Sector: Additive manufacturing (aka, 3D printing)
Staff: 18
Funding: Invested, supported and partnered by Joseph Group

The Travel Diaries of Albert Einstein The Far East, Palestine, and Spain, 1922 – 1923
Editor Ze’ev Rosenkranz
Princeton

MATCH INFO

Wales 1 (Bale 45 3')

Croatia 1 (Vlasic 09')

THE LIGHT

Director: Tom Tykwer

Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger

Rating: 3/5

The specs

Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor

Power: 320bhp

Torque: 605Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh219,000

On sale: Now

South and West: From a Notebook
Joan Didion
Fourth Estate

Other workplace saving schemes

The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.

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.”