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This checklist, developed by Grant Thornton UAE and based on ThoughtLab’s AI maturity framework, guides asset and wealth management leaders through seven pragmatic steps to advance AI maturity. Covering strategy, innovation culture, IT platforms, talent, advanced tools, data management, and governance, the article addresses the unique challenges and opportunities for UAE and GCC firms. It highlights the importance of aligning AI adoption with business goals, regulatory requirements, and local market realities, empowering organisations to move from pilots to enterprise-wide transformation and realise tangible ROI from AI investments.

This study evaluates banks' procurement practices exploring amongst other: governance practices, automation levels and risk management effectiveness of the procurement function.

The regional logistics sector has had a positive start to 2023, primarily driven by a stable macro-economic environment, proactive government policies, increasing demand for logistics services and growing investor confidence in the sector's long-term potential. As a result of these factors, the sector continues to see increasing levels of deal activity, with many high-profile acquisitions, partnerships, and collaborations taking place.

Launching an IPO is one of the most significant corporate transactions a company will enter into during its lifecycle. Many companies aspire to be public as it is often seen as the pinnacle of achievement for the growth of the company by its founders.

The logistics sector has had a positive start to 2023, primarily driven by a stable macro-economic environment, proactive government policies, increasing demand for logistics services due to the growth of e-commerce, technological advancements, and growing investor confidence in the sector's long-term potential.

M&A continued to prosper in the first five months of 2022 after a record-breaking year in 2021, although the 16 June 2022 US Federal Reserve Bank interest rate increase coupled with increased macroeconomic uncertainty marked a significant turning point for the global deal market.

The regional economy performed strongly in the fourth quarter of 2022 owing to a successful FIFA World Cup, a booming tourism season, and favorable trade agreements being signed by energy exporters. Furthermore, the quarter saw an influx of new capital as international and domestic investors opened new offices in the region.

Heading towards the new year, food security remains on top of the agenda for the region, while enhancements in food tech, and the continued rise of meat and dairy alternatives providing have proved to be a nifty tool to combat lingering supply chain and labor shortages and addressing food security.

M&A activity in the regional logistics sector continues to be buoyant, fueled by the proliferation of trade agreements, a growing expat population and the continuing e-commerce boom.

Despite the recent global market downturn and recession fears, economic sentiment remains strong within the GCC region on the back of growth in the tourism and oil.

Amidst global economic uncertainties, the MENA region is on a growth trajectory fuelled by elevated oil prices and accelerating business-friendly reforms. The global logistics market is estimated to be $9.1Tn in 2022 and is expected to reach $12.3Tn by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 6.2%. A combination of initiatives by regional governments and developments in e-commerce are driving the growth in logistics and warehousing activity in the region.

Q1 has seen a continued rise in deal activity in a number of sectors within our M&A and Transactions Advisory team. Following on from our Q4 2021 update, we are delighted to share this quarter's Food & Beverage (F&B) edition, summarising key themes, issues and activity in the sector. It has been a busy start to the year in F&B across the GCC and broader MENA region and we will continue to watch closely throughout the year.

The logistics sector within the MENA region is well-positioned to benefit from post-COVID 19 economic recovery. Our team of subject matter experts provide a global and regional economic outlook and give insights into what the logistics sector can expect in 2022 in our latest Logistics Sector Focus.

Our M&A and Transactions Advisory team actively originates and executes transactions across a range of sectors. Some of the current as well as recently completed transactions include businesses in logistics, technology, real estate, food & beverage, healthcare, education, financial services and energy sectors.

Despite a difficult climate due to the pandemic across geographies and industries, Grant Thornton sees signs of optimism in both the resilience of the MENA markets and a strong recovery in economic and transactional activity.

Grant Thornton UAE is pleased to present our annual Internal Control over Financial Reporting (ICFR) Benchmarking survey regarding compliance with UAE Insurance Authority Circular No. 21 of 2019 in the UAE Insurance Industry.