Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business Etisalat and du on Wednesday announced ‘Taawun’, a joint initiative to support the long-term vision of the government in developing smart infrastructure and giving customers an opportunity to select their operator of choice for telecom services. It initially includes more than 50 projects and will serve as the model for all new greenfield areas in …

Dubai / WAM Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) has announced the distribution of a 45% cash dividend for 2015, a 12.5% increase from the previous year, following the conclusion of its Annual General Meeting (AGM). The assembly approved the bank’s 2015 financial statements. For the 12 months ended December 31, 2015, DIB reported a net profit of AED3.83 billion, a significant …

RITIKA SHARMA Emirates Business A whopping US$1 billion in startup investment funds will be present at the STEP conference, which will host more than 200 start ups and exhibitors, organisers announced. STEP, the largest tech and interactive gathering in the Middle East to be held in Dubai next month, plans to host more than 5,000 industry leaders and entrepreneurs from …