UAE Business Awards 2020

MEAMARKETS / 2020 UAE Business Awards 31 , Best Real Estate Investment Trust - GCC Emirates REIT Emirates REIT is the largest REIT in the GCC and the largest Sharia compliant REIT in the world. Following their success in the UAE Business Awards 2020, we got in touchwith Alois Vieujot to find out more. Principally investing in income-producing real estate, Emirates REIT has been distributing regular bi-annual dividends to its shareholders over the last seven years. To start, Alois provides us with a brief overview of the firm and its client base. “Based in Dubai, Emirates REIT has one billion USD worth of assets in its portfolio, ranging from schools like GEMS World Academy to office buildings like Index Tower.” Currently the assets in Emirates REIT are only based in Dubai, however the performance of the assets haven’t been affected too much despite their location, as Alois confirms. “We have a healthy blend of schools and offices to get a good mix of long-term terranes, with a safe rent as well as short term tenants for a capital gain.” Now in their 10th year of business, the firm have faced several challenges during their time of operations. Moreover, as Alois goes on to explain, it’s their knowledge of the real estate market which has seen them become one of the leading REIT’s in the GCC region. “Collectively, we have an extremely thorough understanding of the market and perform a lot of due diligence on the assets we look to acquire. As a result, we have looked at over 1,500 assets and have only acquired 11 assets.” In the real estate market, Emirates REIT are quite unique in the way they operate and perform their due diligence as Alois points out. “Our due diligence process in addition to the intranet infrastructure where we run the business from, is arguably our most unique selling point. Over the last 15 years, the intranet infrastructure has been developed in-house which has enabled us to conduct business with ease.” Hard work, honesty and respect are the three key values constantly drummed into the employees of Emirates REIT, and as Alois goes on to explain potential employees must be able to relate to these qualities in order for them to fit into the company culture. “We have a very flat culture in place, where we work to the values of hard work, honesty and respect. If people can’t demonstrate these key values, it’s unlikely they will be the right fit for us.” Finally, Alois commented on the future of the firm and its plans for the coming year and beyond. “Moving forward, our aim is to continue growing the size of our portfolio as we look to continue leading the way in real estate investment in Dubai.” Company Name: Emirates REIT Contact Name: Alois Vieujot Address: DIFC, Index Tower, 23rd Floor, Equitativa Office Web Address: www.reit.ae