.jpg)
- The Strategy of the QIA is inspired by the Vision of H.H the Emir
- Focus is on Quality of Investment Rather than its Volume.
- The QIA is a Global Fund managed on Business Rules and Principles.
H.E. Ahmad Al-Sayed, the CEO of Qatar Investment Authority, spoke publicly for the first time since his appointment to confirm the vision for QIA.
In an interview with Bloomberg Television in London, Mr. Al Sayed noted that the strategy of QIA is mainly inspired by the vision of His Higness the Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, Chairman of QIA considering the QIA as a savings fund for the future. “The QIA is working with a professional management team to enhance our return and achieve our objective.”, he said.
Mr. Al Sayed outlined some of the key focuses for QIA, stressing that it is a global fund open to partnerships all over the world and not limited or restricted to a specific area or a country. The objectives of the QIA is to be managed on business rules and principles and achieve reasonable financial revenues.
Replying to a question on the fund’s keenness to invest in the UK, H.E Al Sayed highlighted that “Britain is one of our main destinations for investment. The successful deals resulted in good revenues to everyone and the QIA was happy to invest more in the UK when the right opportunity came along.
“Britain in one of our major destinations of our investment, It has a great system with great regulations. We have Harrods, we have other investments in Britain like Barclays, Sainsbury, Canarywharf and London Stock Exchange. We are happy to invest more when opportunities come along.”, Mr. Al Sayed elaborated.
Speaking about successful deals, Mr Al-Sayed said, “QIA sees success as making a deal on the right terms and making it a win-win for everyone. Because if it is a win-win to both parties, it will be a sustainable and long-term investment. It’s not about big, it’s about quality and showing a good result. We are a global fund. We invest globally, we diversify our assets geographically and by asset classes, and we have asset allocations so we will invest whenever the opportunity comes.”
Mr. Al Syed noted that, on the basis of clear conditions and risk rules the QIA has helped its partners when asked to. He set Barclays and Credit Suisse as examples of this help. “We helped in the merger between Porsche and Volkswagen into one group, and this applied also on the merger between Glencore and Xstrata. We create long-term value for the management, for the shareholders and even for the countries we invest in. We welcome this type of investment and will be happy to discuss opportunities with anyone who has a good idea”, he added.
Commenting on global market opportunities, Mr. Al Sayed continued by saying: “Europe is doing fine, America is seeing sustained growth, while the Emerging markets could be interesting in light of their volatilities and the pressures they are subjected to as a result of the US Federal Reserve tapering policy.
Speaking about Harrods, Mr Al-Sayed said, “Qatar Holdings bought Harrods in 2010 and I said at that time we have different ideas to improve the store. We have done a lot and anyone can walk around the store and see the difference between 2010 and 2014. In May, it will be four years since our acquisition and I think we have done a lot. We have spent £250 to improve different things and the strong performance shows that improvement. Sales are up 60 to 70 per cent following our investment of around £250 million.
“Harrods represents British heritage. We are doing our best to take Harrods to the next level of performance and we are working hard with the management team to improve the store further. We are focusing on improving the quality, the performance and the service. The client’s view is extremely important to us. You can see we are really careful about what customers think about the store. The management is doing a great job. We crossed the £1 billion revenue mark and we have a clear plan on what we want to do and how we can do it”, Mr. Al Sayed said.
Mr Al-Sayed concluded by saying that “Harrods was looking at expanding into hotels. We need to be successful. That is why we need to be careful about timings, about how and when. We are not in a hurry to push it. Of course, London is one of the best possible sites as well as other major cities worldwide.”
