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Notify strategy with evidence: Usage independent information on market self-confidence, growth, and client need to guide your strategic instructions. Confirm financial investment plans: Guarantee resource allocation and initiatives are backed by reliable market insight. Speed up confident decisions: Equip members of your executive team with clear, actionable insight to reach arrangement quickly and take decisive action.

Capital is tighter. And the quality of boardroom judgment will increasingly determine which organisations sustain development and which fall behind. In action, Ascent Club, an exposure launchpad curating access and opportunities for board- and C-level women, in collaboration with BusinessDay, is launching a brand-new regular monthly conference room discussion assembling accomplished African female executives who actively serve at the greatest levels of governance and corporate leadership and who are members of Ascent Club.
This inaugural session combines board professionals to take a look at the real pressures forming board programs today: INSIDE THE CONFERENCE ROOM: The Strategic Threats and Concerns Forming 2026 Financial discipline in constrained markets Evolving regulative and governance expectations Technology disruption and cyber strength Long-term worth production and sustainability imperatives Leadership choices boards should prioritise heading into 2026 Ascent members and speakers consist of: Moderator Nnoli Akpedeye MD/CEO, Contego Servo Limited Speakers Sarah Ajose-Adeogun Handling Partner, Teasoo Consulting Ochanya R.
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Deborah David CFO, Powergas It is a convening of executives contributing straight to governance, threat oversight, and tactical direction within their organisations. Through this partnership, Ascent Club and BusinessDay are intentionally developing a repeating online forum that surfaces board-level insight, magnifies reputable female governance voices, and broadens access to the strategic thinking emerging from Africa's conference rooms.
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Overall assets held broadly stable over the quarter, while trading levels pointed to continued repositioning and as a reaction to geopolitical news rather than a significant new capital deployment. Worldwide macro conditions set a difficult backdrop.
The GCC ETF universe made up 39 ETFs with a total AUM of $9.35 billion (since Q1 2026). Performance across the market was broadly negative, with just 13 ETFs providing favorable returns compared to 26 in decrease. Overall, the information shows a market that is active however narrow, with capital and liquidity focused in a small subset of products.
Why Is Operational Excellence Crucial for 2026 Expansion?Efficiency in Q1 2026 was driven by a narrow group of distinctive winners, rather than broad market strength. The leading ETFs were focused in specific nation direct exposures and commodities, particularly Turkey, Saudi petrochemicals, gold, and Egypt. Countries like Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Egypt were resilient during the quarter. Saudi Arabia's oil direct exposure supported its local market, with Aramco reaching brand-new highs in the middle of greater oil costs, in addition to its continued ability to export oil through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which stays open.
Egypt provided strong efficiency in January and February. Regardless of a market pullback in March due to the war, both Egypt's market and its ETFs still published positive returns for the quarter. The continuous Middle East conflict and resulting energy shock have reshaped the outlook for emerging market equities in between the oil-haves and the oil-have-nots.
The sector also faced broader macro headwinds, consisting of a more mindful policy background in China and worldwide risk-off sentiment driven by geopolitical tensions and higher energy prices. Thematic ETFs Struggled for the many part, particularly those connected to carbon and high-growth technology, as evaluation pressures and international rate dynamics weighed on performance.
Flows in Q1 2026 were modest and highly concentrated, showing selective allotment rather than broad market involvement. Regardless of weak efficiency, ETFs taped $27.1 million in net inflows, with only a small number of items drawing in new capital.

Trading activity remained steady, with typical 30-day volumes around 33,000 shares, focused in a handful of larger and more liquid ETFs. Most activity appears to have taken location in the secondary market, enabling investors to change positions without substantial primary productions or redemptions.
In January, Boreas launched its S&P Global High-end UCITS ETF, adding a specific niche thematic direct exposure focused on global luxury and consumer brand names. Momentum continued into April with the approval of KraneShares AGIX and KWIN ETFs by the CMA for cross-listing on ADX. These funds are anticipated to release in April pending a last approval from ADX.
Q1 2026 revealed some development associating with ETFs in the GCC. We anticipate more global and thematic ETFs to list in the GCC throughout 2026. While the dispute has actually impacted sentiment and prices throughout the quarter, it has driven more volume and interest in local assets.
Why Is Operational Excellence Crucial for 2026 Expansion?Regardless of ongoing geopolitical tensions and security dangers throughout the Middle East, the economies of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have continued to show strength, preserving favorable development momentum in the last few years. While disputes in the larger region and global financial uncertainty stay a structural restraint, GCC nations have up until now limited their influence on domestic financial efficiency through strong financial positions, policy continuity, and sustained financial investment.
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