Dubai – Mubasher: Indosuez Wealth Management, the global wealth management arm of Crédit Agricole group, on Wednesday, hosted its 2019 Middle East Investment Conference in Dubai, welcoming the bank’s regional Ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWI) among over 120 guests and other prominent keynote speakers.

The 2019 event explored key themes like investment decision-makers in today’s economy such as the global outlook, regional reforms, and currency challenges, supporting the importance of values as was proven in the debates regarding tolerance, happiness, and climate change, according to a press release on Thursday.

The company’s global head of the Middle East and Africa, François Farjallah, commented, “According to the World Wealth Report of 2019, the Middle East is the only region in the world that witnessed a strong growth of wealth in 2018. This trend looks set to continue in 2019 - particularly amongst the Ultra High Net Worth individuals in the region.”

He added, “Indosuez Wealth Management Group’s strategy to invest and grow its presence in the Middle East is bearing its fruits, as more and more clients trust us with their assets and estate planning. Hosting events such as the Middle East Investment Conference gives us a valuable opportunity to reaffirm that social responsibility and human dimension are at the heart of our identity and commitments.”   

Global chief economist, Marie Owens Thomsen, concluded regarding investment and climate change, “Investors must assess the value at risk in their portfolios. According to UNEP, a temperature increase of 1.5°C, could put 13% of the value of portfolios at risk. The 500 largest asset managers in the world manage more than 81,000 billion dollars. They, therefore, face a potential loss of nearly $11 trillion, or more if temperatures climb higher still. Moreover, such aggregate figures mask significant variations across sectors. Now is the time to “weather-proof” investment portfolios.”