All Categories
Featured
Table of Contents
Notify technique with proof: Use independent data on market confidence, growth, and customer demand to direct your tactical direction. Validate financial investment strategies: Ensure resource allocation and initiatives are backed by reliable market insight. Speed up confident choices: Gear up members of your executive team with clear, actionable insight to reach contract quickly and take decisive action.
Capital is tighter. And the quality of boardroom judgment will progressively figure out which organisations sustain growth and which fall behind. In response, Climb Club, a presence launchpad curating access and chances for board- and C-level females, in collaboration with BusinessDay, is launching a brand-new month-to-month boardroom discussion assembling accomplished African female executives who actively serve at the greatest levels of governance and corporate leadership and who are members of Ascent Club.
This inaugural session brings together board professionals to take a look at the genuine pressures shaping board agendas today: INSIDE THE CONFERENCE ROOM: The Strategic Risks and Concerns Shaping 2026 Financial discipline in constrained markets Developing regulative and governance expectations Innovation disturbance and cyber strength Long-term value development and sustainability imperatives Management decisions boards should prioritise heading into 2026 Ascent members and speakers include: Mediator Nnoli Akpedeye MD/CEO, Contego Servo Limited Speakers Sarah Ajose-Adeogun Handling Partner, Teasoo Consulting Ochanya R.
Deborah David CFO, Powergas It is a convening of executives contributing directly to governance, risk oversight, and strategic instructions within their organisations. Through this partnership, Climb Club and BusinessDay are intentionally developing a recurring forum that surfaces board-level insight, amplifies credible female governance voices, and expands access to the tactical thinking emerging from Africa's conference rooms.
4 March 2026 6:00 PM WAT Zoom Register to sign up with the discussion. #InsideTheBoardroom #ExecutiveLeadership Registration Link: . Get the current insights, patterns, and methods provided straight to your inbox. Join Everest Group's newsletter to remain at the leading edge of what's next.
Total assets held broadly steady over the quarter, while trading levels pointed to continued rearranging and as a reaction to geopolitical news rather than a significant brand-new capital implementation. Global macro conditions set a difficult backdrop.
The result was a quarter defined by volatility, dispersion, and selective positioning, rather than a clear directional pattern. Oil associated possessions did well for the many part. On the positive side, in January, the Boreas Outright Luxury ETF released on ADX to include more thematic ETFs. Likewise in Q1, 2 more Kraneshares have been authorized for launch by the Capital Market Authority (CMA) and are about to be approved by the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange (ADX). The GCC ETF universe consisted of 39 ETFs with an overall AUM of $9.35 billion (as of Q1 2026). Performance throughout the market was broadly negative, with only 13 ETFs providing positive returns compared to 26 in decline. Performance in Q1 2026 was driven by a narrow group of distinctive winners, rather than broad market strength.
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 dispute and resulting energy shock have reshaped the outlook for emerging market equities in between the oil-haves and the oil-have-nots.
The sector likewise dealt with wider macro headwinds, including a more mindful policy background in China and worldwide risk-off sentiment driven by geopolitical stress and higher energy prices. Thematic ETFs Struggled for the most part, especially those linked to carbon and high-growth innovation, as valuation pressures and global rate dynamics weighed on performance.
The petrochemical ETF significantly outperformed. Circulations in Q1 2026 were modest and highly focused, reflecting selective allocation instead of broad market involvement. Regardless of weak efficiency, ETFs recorded $27.1 million in net inflows, with only a small number of products attracting brand-new capital. This shows that investors were targeting particular exposures, while minimizing or turning out of others.
Trading activity stayed stable, with typical 30-day volumes around 33,000 shares, focused in a handful of larger and more liquid ETFs. Many activity appears to have happened in the secondary market, making it possible for financiers to change positions without significant main developments or redemptions. While current geopolitical events have actually resulted in more financial pressure on GCC countries, the region remains durable and well capitalized to handle the scenario.
In January, Boreas released its S&P Global High-end UCITS ETF, adding a specific niche thematic exposure focused on international luxury and customer brand names. ETFs by the CMA for cross-listing on ADX.
Q1 2026 showed some development relating to ETFs in the GCC. We anticipate more worldwide and thematic ETFs to list in the GCC during 2026. While the dispute has actually impacted belief and costs throughout the quarter, it has driven more volume and interest in local possessions.
Can Dubai Sustain Industrial Growth during 2026?In spite of continuous geopolitical stress and security dangers across the Middle East, the economies of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have continued to demonstrate strength, maintaining favorable development momentum over the last few years. While conflicts in the larger region and worldwide financial uncertainty stay a structural restraint, GCC countries have actually so far restricted their influence on domestic financial performance through strong financial positions, policy continuity, and sustained financial investment.
Latest Posts
Bridging Policy and Operational Performance Across the Gulf
Accelerating Regional Industrial Expansion Strategies
Optimising Operational Efficiency through Advanced Market Research

