DUBAI // What do Pamela Anderson, Lindsay Lohan and Miley Cyrus’s mum Tish have in common? They’ve all supported the Dubai bid for Expo 2020 on their Twitter page.
Those slightly leftfield endorsements can be credited to one man - celebrity booker Sheeraz Hasan.
Mr Hasan, who travels regularly between Dubai and Hollywood, was the man behind Kim Kardashian’s appearance at the Dubai Mall to officially open a milkshake shop in 2011.
After learning of the emirate’s bid to host the World Expo in 2020, he set out to lend a bit of star-studded support.
“I have access to some of the biggest celebrities in Hollywood,” said Mr Hasan. “They’re friends of mine and I wanted to educate them about Dubai.
“Since we started our Dubai Expo Bid 2020 awareness campaign a few days ago, our office phones have been ringing nonstop with celebrities inquiring about how to get involved with us in Dubai.”
Mr Hasan has also garnered the support of Khloe Kardashian, Bollywood star Mallika Sherawat, Justin Bieber’s videographer Alfredo Flores, Disney stars Bella Thorne and Zendaya Coleman, LaToya Jackson, Justin Bieber’s tour manager Kenny Hamilton, Ne-Yo, and Jay Sean.
Mr Hasan is the founder of Hollywood.TV, a celebrity content distributor. Next year he hopes to launch Dubai.TV, a similar service which will promote Dubai to the world and act as a local talent booker for overseas artists.
His website shows photos of him meetings with celebrities like George Clooney, Hillary Clinton and even Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, the crown prince of Dubai.
In 2002 Mr Hasan moved from London to Hollywood and has set up his media business. He met with US President Barack Obama in 2012, who called him an example in practice of the American Dream.
Mr Hasan said he was expected to meet with Mr Obama again on Wednesday “to personally speak to him about Dubai’s bid for World Expo 2020”.
He added that the campaign has so far generated more than 100 million social media impressions online. Gaining huge public support is crucial for a Dubai win, said Mr Hasan.
“Celebrities are the most influential people in the world — people devotedly follow celebrities, listen to what they say, and emulate them, so this is the fastest way to spread the word about Dubai’s bid for World Expo 2020,” he added.
“We tagged the official Dubai Expo 2020 committee and also His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, creating a flurry of conversation and support for the UAE. I believe by generating massive celebrity support for Dubai’s bid for the World Expo, this will help cement the win. I feel quite strongly about this.”
Dubai.TV will mostly operate as a social media marketing tool, said Mr Hasan. It will be based in Hollywood, but will focus on using celebrity endorsements to promote UAE brands and initiatives.
Mr Hasan said even before launch,the company had already received offers to acquire the brand from the UAE, India, Brazil, Russia and the UK.
He added that it would help to promote Dubai overseas, particularly in Hollywood.
“We will have Dubai.TV branded microphones on every red carpet in Los Angeles and New York,” said Mr Hasan.
“This will be the biggest promotional tool for Dubai in the Western world.”
mcroucher@thenational.ae
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
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.”
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Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
'The Lost Daughter'
Director: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Starring: Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Dakota Johnson
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
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The biog
Name: Timothy Husband
Nationality: New Zealand
Education: Degree in zoology at The University of Sydney
Favourite book: Lemurs of Madagascar by Russell A Mittermeier
Favourite music: Billy Joel
Weekends and holidays: Talking about animals or visiting his farm in Australia
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Surianah's top five jazz artists
Billie Holliday: for the burn and also the way she told stories.
Thelonius Monk: for his earnestness.
Duke Ellington: for his edge and spirituality.
Louis Armstrong: his legacy is undeniable. He is considered as one of the most revolutionary and influential musicians.
Terence Blanchard: very political - a lot of jazz musicians are making protest music right now.
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