The National Investor creates MSCI Arabian Markets Real Estate Capped Index in cooperation with MSCI Barra

Notes and media contacts

About The National Investor:

The National Investor (TNI) is a privately owned regional investment banking group. The firm comprises six strategic business divisions covering investment banking, private equity, asset management, real estate, investment research and principal investments. In addition, the firm has an associate company, GNSC, which provides brokerage services as a registered member of the Abu Dhabi Securities Market (ADSM) and the Dubai Financial Market (DFM).

About The National Investor Asset Management:

The activities of TNI's Asset Management Division started with the establishment of the firm back in 1994. Investments were carried out with the balance sheet and collectively on behalf of select and exclusive clients. In 2005, the Board of Directors and the Executives of TNI took a strategic decision to diversify the earning streams of the firm. The primary path for the realization of this strategy was the creation of an asset management division. Today TNI Asset Management and the funds they manage are a top priority for the firm.

In early 2007 the division instigated a new paradigm. This strategic model is best described by the four ideological pillars to which the culture of the division is realigned. These are the Ethical standards, Client focus, Innovation and Superior performance. Through continuous client engagement, TNI aspires to achieve client satisfaction and meet its investors' expectations. TNI's funds' performance and its asset managers' dedication to achieving superior returns have not gone unnoticed, as TNI has been awarded many accolades from industry benchmarks.

In parallel, the asset management group has rapidly grown to become a main contributor to TNI's bottom line.

About the TNI Real Estate Fund:

Focus

The Fund is a sector focused fund mainly targeting investments in equities of real estate firms publicly traded in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) official exchanges. The Fund provides investors with a liquid investment approach to a traditionally illiquid and capital intensive sector.

Management Style

The key investment criteria are the company's financial strengths, competitiveness, profitability, growth prospects and quality of management. The allocation will be based on fundamental research and will incorporate a blend of top-down and a bottom-up analytical approach.

Objective

The fund aims to provide long-term capital appreciation through investing in equity securities of real estate firms publicly traded in the MENA equity markets. Fund investments can also include private equities of firms expected to list their shares within a 12-month period, as well as debt instruments issued by MENA real estate firms.

Suitability

Units of the Fund are speculative and involve a high degree of risk. The Fund is therefore designed for sophisticated investors who are able to understand the risks involved in emerging markets' equity investments, particularly in the MENA equities.

About MSCI Barra:

MSCI Barra is a leading provider of investment decision support tools to investment institutions worldwide. MSCI Barra products include indices and portfolio risk and performance analytics for use in managing equity, fixed income and multi-asset class portfolios.

The company's flagship products are the MSCI International Equity Indices, which are estimated to have over $3 trillion benchmarked to them, and the Barra risk models and portfolio analytics, which cover 56 equity and 46 fixed income markets. MSCI Barra is headquartered in New York, with research and commercial offices around the world. Morgan Stanley, a global financial services firm, is the controlling shareholder of MSCI Barra.

MSCI Barra was recently named Index Provider of the Year at the European Pensions Awards and Best Provider of Benchmark Indices in Asia Pacific at the Asian Investor Service Provider Awards.

For more information, please contact:

Noha Gaber
Capital MS&L Middle East
Dubai Media City
PO Box 502697
Dubai, UAE
Tel: +971 4 427 6448
Fax: +971 4 427 8689