Dubai International Capital signs investment cooperation agreement with Chinese Government

The agreement covers a wide variety of activities that will assist the Chinese Government in encouraging its top companies to expand and invest internationally and in particular in the Middle East Region. The agreement was signed by the Executive Vice President of Sinosure, Mr. Liang Zhidong and the Chairman of Dubai International Capital, Mr. Mohammed Al Gergawi.

The Chinese Government, with one of the fastest growing economies in the world at over 9% for the past 20 years, is looking for global expansion opportunities. For the last several years the State Council has made it one of its priorities for Chinese companies to "Go Abroad" and to develop international markets. There are a number of Chinese companies that have expanded successfully internationally and the Chinese Government would like to expedite this trend through the agreement with Dubai International Capital.

Overall, Chinese exports in 2003 stood at $440 billion and has been growing by over 20% per year for the past 7 years. Sinosure, established only in 2001, already has insured Chinese transactions for over $6 billion and is growing rapidly. International benchmarks, which indicate that traditional Export Credit companies can insure around 10% of a country's exports, suggest that Sinosure should be able grow by over 8x in the coming years. Sinosure has been mandated by the Ministry of Finance and the State Council to actively seek to increase China's export potential through local and international expansion.

China is seeking to leverage Dubai's status as the business hub of the Middle East North Africa Region (MENA) as well as India and the sub-continent. As part of the agreement, Dubai International Capital will have the first look at qualified Chinese companies seeking to expand internationally. As well, Sinosure will set up an office in Dubai to explore opportunities for Chinese companies interested in the Region and Dubai International Capital will have unprecedented access to top Chinese companies that are looking to expand globally. Sinosure and Dubai International Capital will also pursue the option of setting up a dedicated Fund for such opportunities in the near future.

Although, only 3% ($72 million) of China's overseas investment is dedicated to the Middle East Region, Sinosure intends to increase this exponentially in the near future, in the areas of trade, natural resources and manufacturing. Through the cooperation with Dubai International Capital, Sinosure will encourage its enterprises to invest and operate in the Middle East and other Regions internationally in areas where Chinese enterprises can create sustainable and consistent value for both sides.

"We view this as the beginning of a long-term, multi-faceted relationship between Dubai and China" said Mohammed Al Gergawi, Chairman of Dubai International Capital, "this agreement is indicative of the Vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed to make Dubai one of the leading cities in the world in business, trade, tourism and overall quality of life".

"Dubai International Capital is excited about the opportunity to investigate prospective investments in China and in Chinese companies seeking to address the Middle East Region and beyond" says Sameer Al Ansari, CEO of Dubai International Capital, "we will work closely with the Chinese Government to ensure that all our interest are aligned in this endeavor. Dubai International Capital has agreed to assist the Chinese Government in these activities to bolster the relationship between the two Regions as well as source attractive investment opportunities from which both can benefit."

Sinosure is wholly state-owned and authorized by the State Council. It was established on 18 December 2001 as China's only official export credit insurance agency and is headquartered in Beijing. It's objectives are to deepen reform in the insurance industry, strengthen and standardize China's export credit insurance system, and enhance the international competitiveness of Chinese enterprises in accordance with the Chinese Government's diplomatic, foreign trade, industrial and financial policies. Sinosure will cover mainly political risks and commercial risks with various insurance policies and guarantees. It has registered capital of RMB 4 billion (approximately USD 500 million).

Dubai International Capital, LLC was launched on October 26, 2004. It is the newly formed investment arm of Dubai Holding, LLC. Dubai International Capital's mission is to build an international portfolio of diverse business assets generating above average returns whilst also creating strategic alliances for Dubai Holding and its stakeholders.