“Somebody asked me about what happened with Abraaj Capital, and my answer was, ‘Do you remember 2008 Lehman Brothers? It’s version two of Lehman Brothers.’ We lost an investment that we made in private equity. Unlike Lehman Brothers, Abraaj did not precede a crisis like the financial crisis of 2008, but its liquidation filing raised questions in the region on corporate governance, prompting Dubai authorities to look into tightening regulations. Of all publicly listed companies in the UAE, Air Arabia had the largest exposure to Abraaj. Ali said he expected Air Arabia to take another three to four months before placing an order for 100 or more aircraft.

Source: The North Africa Journal April 30, 2019 17:26 UTC