DPG outlines strategy to avoid another Dubai debt crisis

Dubai Properties Group, the property division of Dubai Holding owned by the Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has unveiled a new corporate strategy, including key appointments, in the aftermath of its failure to agree the merger with Emaar Properties announced earlier this summer.

The group has now consolidated three previous companies – Dubai Properties, Sama Dubai, and Dubailand developer Tatweer – and its new governance structure is expected to come forward with a debt management strategy to avoid the confusion and bad publicity that surrounded the Dubai World debt crisis.

Dubai Properties built the 40 towers of the Jumeirah Beach Residence and the Executive Towers in Business Bay (see above).

New management team

CEO Khalid Malik confirmed that ex-Tatweer and UK trained accountant David Anderson will be chief financial officer, while Amjid Javaid Sheikh heads compliance and risk management.

Fareda Abdullah is chief operating officer, and Ex-Tatweer and British Airways manager Jayne O’Brien becomes chief marketing officer. Arif Mubarak is named chief real estate officer and Dominic Pilkington legal executive director.

Al Malik outlined DPG’s new mission and goals, at a ‘Town Hall Briefing’ attended by employees and held at the Jumeirah Beach Hotel’s conference centre. During the meeting he said that the company ‘continues to move forward with renewed strength and a strong focus on reliability’.

He also announced that Mohammed Al Habbai is to be CEO of the Dubailand theme park company. Billy Daly remains the CEO of Dubai Asset Management, while Saeed Bushalat continues as the CEO of Salwan, DPG’s property management service company.

Debt mountain

But while news of the new corporate governance team is no doubt welcome as another sign that Dubai is getting to grip with the legacy of the world’s worst property crash in 2009, there was no news of the DPG debt mountain, reckoned to exceed $10 billion.

DPG is understood to have $1.9 billion in debt maturing in the first half of 2010, and the value of these bonds has slumped reflecting the market view that this debt will not be repaid in its current form.

However, Dubai has likely learned its lesson from the Dubai World debt crisis in December, and this latest sober and careful press announcement from DPG suggests that it will not be providing another drama, let alone another crisis with Abu Dhabi stepping in at the 11th hour to save the day.