Venezuela is slipping into chaos as President Nicolas Maduro called for the popular assembly last week in a fresh attempt to consolidate his hold on the nation. The opposition has refused to help draft a new constitution, calling the process fraudulent. The opposition coalition has accused Maduro of going against the country’s charter as any constitutional change requires the ...

  What happens when strongmen meet? We know that the world is slowly filling up with populist nationalists, from Manila to Washington. But how do they plan to deal with each other? Will they join forces against the sanctimonious, supra-national powers that dismay them all? Or will they compete, as erstwhile tough guys seem most comfortable doing? Perhaps we shouldn’t ...

  News that Alipay hooked up with First Data Corp. in the US may end up being more significant for both the Chinese fintech player and for Apple Inc. than Jack Ma’s $1.2 billion bid for an old-school payments provider, MoneyGram International Inc. In one swoop, the payments affiliate of Ma’s Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. gets access to 4 million ...

  In 1989, Sears Roebuck & Co. ruled America as its biggest retailer. It loomed over rivals from a perch high above Chicago, inside what was once the world’s tallest building—one bearing the company’s name. The fall from that height may finally be nearing an end. Over the course of almost three decades, the company experienced what industry observers described ...

  DUBAI / WAM The Dubai Financial Market Company (DFM) announced its financial results for the first quarter of the year ending 31 March 2017, reporting a net profit of AED102.34 million, 19% increase compared to AED86 million during the corresponding period of 2016. The company’s total revenue has grown by 18% to AED149.34 million in Q1 of 2017 compared to ...

  ABU DHABI / WAM An annual exhibition organised by the Abu Dhabi Businesswomen Council opened on Monday to showcase the innovative projects launched by Emirati women entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs from the UAE, Bahrain and Kuwait are participating in the exhibition held under the patronage of HH Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women’s Union, Supreme Chairwoman of the ...

  DUBAI / WAM Emirates NBD announced it is the first bank in UAE to process loan or card applications utilising Al Etihad Credit Bureau Consumer Retail Banking Score. The AECB Consumer Retail Credit Bureau Score is the first scoring system for UAE’s retail banking customers, exclusively developed for risk prediction using historical data on repayment behaviour reported to Al Etihad ...

  Dubai / WAM Merger and acquisition (M&A) activity in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) declined in the first quarter of 2017 recording 84 deals, compared to 115 deals in Q1 of 2016, according to the Q1 2017 M&A report from global professional services firm EY. However, the report shows that MENA deal values remained broadly stable reaching ...

  Abu Dhabi / WAM His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, witnessed on Monday the launch of Miral’s AED12 billion master development plan to transform the southern end of Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. His Highness welcomed Miral’s delegation today at the Sea Palace Abu ...

  Once the initial market relief plays out — that, even during an unprecedented ‘anti-establishment’ wave in both Europe and the US, French voters rejected a far right president in Marine Le Pen of the National Front — interest will shift to how relative newcomer Emmanuel Macron will manage to govern in a country accustomed to mainstream politics. And it ...