Much has happened in the last quarter. Firstly there has been the announcement of the creation of the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (“RERA”) to monitor the increasing volume of laws and regulations in the property sector, including the operation of escrow accounts. This last item – the operation of escrow accounts is a major change and time will tell as to what impact this will have on the property development sector, both for new projects and for existing projects as they bring themselves into line with the new regulations.

Secondly, there has been the amendment to the Commercial Companies Law allowing companies to float with just 30% of the shares being offered to the public. This is likely to increase the depth of the stock markets as family owned groups are now more likely to consider a stock exchange listing in their medium term strategies as the family can now retain control over the assets they have spent years building.

Our interview this time is with Mr. G Tripathi, CFO and member of the board of Capital Industries & Investments LLC, a local private equity firm.

We have articles on the importance of diagnostic reviews to integrate and improve processes and procedures as organizations grow and on strategic career and life planning, something we all need to consider from time to time.

China is becoming increasingly important to the region and we examine the recent changes in the tax laws and their impact on investment in China.

We also have our usual update on happenings in the Sultanate of Oman.

Please feel free to write (update@pkfuae.com) if you would like to express an opinion on any matter inside.

GRAHAM MARTINS