All Categories
Featured
Table of Contents
Inform strategy with evidence: Use independent information on market confidence, growth, and customer need to direct your strategic direction. Validate investment plans: Make sure resource allotment and initiatives are backed by trustworthy market insight. Accelerate confident choices: Gear up members of your executive team with clear, actionable insight to reach contract rapidly and take decisive action.
Capital is tighter. And the quality of conference room judgment will increasingly figure out which organisations sustain growth and which fall behind. In response, Climb Club, an exposure launchpad curating access and opportunities for board- and C-level women, in cooperation with BusinessDay, is launching a new regular monthly boardroom discussion convening accomplished African female executives who actively serve at the greatest levels of governance and corporate management and who are members of Ascent Club.
This inaugural session unites board professionals to take a look at the genuine pressures shaping board programs today: INSIDE THE CONFERENCE ROOM: The Strategic Dangers and Concerns Forming 2026 Monetary discipline in constrained markets Progressing regulatory and governance expectations Technology disturbance and cyber strength Long-lasting value creation and sustainability imperatives Management decisions boards must prioritise heading into 2026 Climb members and speakers include: Moderator Nnoli Akpedeye MD/CEO, Contego Servo Limited Speakers Sarah Ajose-Adeogun Handling Partner, Teasoo Consulting Ochanya R.
Deborah David CFO, Powergas It is an assembling of executives contributing directly to governance, risk oversight, and tactical instructions within their organisations. Through this collaboration, Ascent Club and BusinessDay are purposefully creating a recurring forum that surface areas board-level insight, enhances reliable female governance voices, and expands access to the tactical thinking emerging from Africa's boardrooms.
Get the most recent insights, patterns, and techniques provided directly to your inbox. Sign up with Everest Group's newsletter to remain at the leading edge of what's next.
The GCC ETF market gone into Q1 2026 in a debt consolidation phase, with activity staying elevated however growth slowing. Overall properties held broadly steady over the quarter, while trading levels indicated continued rearranging and as a response to geopolitical news instead of a meaningful brand-new capital deployment. International macro conditions set a tough backdrop.
The GCC ETF universe consisted of 39 ETFs with a total AUM of $9.35 billion (as of Q1 2026). Performance throughout the market was broadly negative, with just 13 ETFs delivering favorable returns compared to 26 in decline. Overall, the data reflects a market that is active however narrow, with capital and liquidity focused in a small subset of items.
Preparing the UAE Labor Force for the 2026 Digital ShiftEfficiency in Q1 2026 was driven by a narrow group of idiosyncratic winners, instead of broad market strength. The leading ETFs were concentrated in specific nation exposures and products, particularly Turkey, Saudi petrochemicals, gold, and Egypt. Nations like Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Egypt were durable throughout the quarter. Saudi Arabia's oil direct exposure supported its regional market, with Aramco reaching brand-new highs amidst greater oil rates, along with its continued ability to export oil through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which remains open.
Egypt delivered strong performance in January and February. Regardless of a market pullback in March due to the war, both Egypt's market and its ETFs still posted favorable returns for the quarter. The ongoing Middle East conflict and resulting energy shock have reshaped the outlook for emerging market equities between the oil-haves and the oil-have-nots.
The sector also dealt with wider macro headwinds, including a more mindful policy background in China and international risk-off belief driven by geopolitical stress and higher energy rates. Thematic ETFs also had a hard time for the many part, especially those linked to carbon and high-growth innovation, as valuation pressures and worldwide rate characteristics weighed on performance.
Circulations in Q1 2026 were modest and extremely focused, showing selective allocation rather than broad market participation. In spite of weak efficiency, ETFs recorded $27.1 million in net inflows, with only a small number of products bring in new capital.
Trading activity stayed constant, with typical 30-day volumes around 33,000 shares, concentrated in a handful of larger and more liquid ETFs. Most activity appears to have taken location in the secondary market, allowing investors to change positions without significant main developments or redemptions.
In January, Boreas introduced its S&P Global High-end UCITS ETF, including a specific niche thematic direct exposure focused on international high-end and customer brand names. Momentum continued into April with the approval of KraneShares AGIX and KWIN ETFs by the CMA for cross-listing on ADX. These funds are expected to launch in April pending a last approval from ADX.
Q1 2026 showed some development associating with ETFs in the GCC. We anticipate more international and thematic ETFs to list in the GCC during 2026. While the conflict has actually impacted sentiment and costs during the quarter, it has driven more volume and interest in regional assets.
Preparing the UAE Labor Force for the 2026 Digital ShiftIn spite of continuous geopolitical stress and security dangers across the Middle East, the economies of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have actually continued to show resilience, maintaining positive development momentum in recent years. While disputes in the broader area and international financial uncertainty stay a structural constraint, GCC countries have so far restricted their influence on domestic economic efficiency through strong fiscal positions, policy continuity, and continual financial investment.
Latest Posts
Operational Excellence: a Key Driver for 2026 Success
How AI Shift Does Fuel Success?
Comparing Innovative Models Against Traditional Business


