Holy cats! Dubai to buy stake in NASDAQ

[KamaAina]

Is this Dubai Ports World all over again??

http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/sep2007/gb20070927_544706.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_businessweek+exclusives

The reason: Ba'alawy is one of the key drivers of Dubai's effort to become a global financial hub. As executive chairman of Dubai Group—a big investment arm of the emirate's ruler, Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum—Ba'alawy was instrumental in forging a complex $6.5 billion deal involving Borse Dubai, NASDAQ, the Swedish exchange operator OMX Group, and the London Stock Exchange. The series of transactions would result in NASDAQ Stock Market Inc. (NDAQ) taking over the Swedish group, Borse Dubai holding a 20% stake in NASDAQ, and the U.S. exchange owning a third of a Borse Dubai subsidiary. On Sept. 26 the deal took a step closer to completion as investors owning 47% of OMX shares indicated their support. In a related transaction, Borse Dubai will take over a 28% stake NASDAQ holds in the LSE.

In a stroke, NASDAQ got an entrée into the booming Gulf region and a partner that may yet help it get its hands on the London bourse. OMX, which owns exchanges in Europe and—more important—has developed trading software used at 60 bourses around the world, got extra firepower in its efforts to sell that technology. And Dubai found a powerful ally to bolster its bid to become the regional money hub.

And they ain't alone, either:

The sheikh isn't alone among Gulf rulers in recognizing the potential in financial markets. Some 250 miles to the west in Doha, Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani has adopted a similar strategy, earmarking some $40 billion for projects that might reduce the emirate's dependence on oil and gas. Giving Dubai a poke in the eye, Qatar in 2005 hired as its chief financial regulator Phillip Thorpe, who had been fired from a similar job in Dubai after a flap over dealmaking by local officials. The Qataris were interested in NASDAQ's stake in the LSE, and industry insiders say they were furious when Borse Dubai and NASDAQ got together. Qatar quickly responded by purchasing 20% of the LSE and 10% of OMX.

Obviously I don't want to be reflexively anti-Middle East, but I would, for starters, like some answers to the persistent questions about al-Qaeda laundering money through the UAE.

Oh well, the sooner Peak Oil comes, the less money we'll be feeding into their coffers... :sarcasm:

[blm]

1. No - it's continuation of BCCI. Guess who staked BCCI.

But we're not supposed to mention it, these days.

Especially with AQ Khan given his freedom some months ago right before they started rattling on about Iranian and Syrian nukes being feared by US officials (including Hillary at the debate).

Nope - it's just our imagination....or...another coincidence.

[sicksicksick_N_tired]

2. There were some thorough threads on this. Do you know how to pull them back up?

Obviously, I am a novice,...merely an observant poster with no special skills.

[KamaAina]

3. Here's one

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=1810198&mesg_id=1810198

[blm]

5. Good to see more eyeballs on this.

Thanks, K.

[blm]

4. One of the best was in Feb2006 during Dubai ports deal - from Stephanie:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x490176

The recent threads noted that AQ Khan's name was being dropped into stories about Syrian nukes.

That name is key because he was a named figure in BCCI, and was included as an outstanding matter in Kerry's Dec 1992 report. His business was nuclear proliferation, but he was doing it FOR the real powerbrokers staking him.

And it looks to me like they still are.