DOHA / Bloomberg UrbaCon Trading & Contracting Co., the construction firm building the Mall of Qatar, is considering an initial public offering in Doha that may raise about $1 billion, people familiar with the matter said. UCC, as the Qatari company is also known, has spoken to advisers about managing an IPO, which could occur by the fourth quarter of …

Riyadh / Bloomberg Saudi Arabia is creating a “one-stop shop” for housing developers as it tries to relieve bureaucratic gridlock that is stalling plans to build half a million affordable homes for its soaring population. The Real Estate Developers Center will bring together various government agencies involved with the review and approval of housing projects, reducing the time and effort …

NEW YORK / Bloomberg A provision of the 2010 Dodd-Frank law that takes effect in December forces banks to keep a stake in the commercial-property loans they package into securities and sell off to investors. The rule is intended to deter the type of risky lending that helped fuel the last decade’s boom and bust. Under the current business model, …