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Dubai’s Al-Habtoor group, one of the Middle East’s largest family businesses, is targeting central Europe in a new investment push, its chairman said
Khalaf Al-Habtoor said in a Facebook post on Monday that the group would soon open a regional office in the Hungarian capital Budapest for this purpose and that new projects would be announced later.
Al-Habtoor revealed the plans just after announcing that the group would hire US law firm White & Case to represent the Group in an arbitration case against Lebanon, which he has accused of inflicting heavy losses on the group’s investments in the Arab country.
Al-Habtoor also said this month he would wind up his more than $1 billion investments in crisis-torn Lebanon and would target nearby Syria in new projects.
“Following the announcement of preparations for the opening of the Habtoor research centre in Budapest, I am pleased that we are also preparing to open a regional office in Hungary,” the chairman said in his post.
“This office will serve as a platform for managing and expanding our operations in Hungary and neighboring countries in Central Europe.”
He said the group’s decision to expand investments in Central Europe was made after an “in-depth study and a clear vision.”
Hungary, and Budapest in particular, has proven to be a stable environment, open to investment, and treats investors as partners, not mere guests, he said.
“We are not looking for short-term opportunities, but rather sustainable partnerships built on mutual trust and legal stability. Hungary has set a shining example in how to embrace investment and foster trust,” Al-Habtoor said.
“Today, we are preparing to launch projects soon, as part of a well-considered expansion plan. Other projects will follow, to be announced in due course…. Central Europe represents a new phase of growth for us, and Hungary will be a key pillar in this journey,” he added.
(Writing by N Saeed; Editing by Anoop Menon)
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