Medallion Associates is a Dubai-based private real estate investment firm that offers advisory services, asset management, financing and development. In February 2018, the business was appointed by the Dubai Land Department as an international promotional trustee and by November 2019, Medallion inaugurated offices in London and Malaysia. Since then, and during the pandemic, Medallion has secured more than Dh5.5 billion in complex financing for the different products in the Dubai real estate market.
Masood Al Awar, CEO of Medallion Associates, who has more than 30 years of experience in banking, government and real estate, believes that the Dubai real estate sector remains attractive to foreign investors following the coronavirus with more innovative and different service offerings and products.
For local companies to take advantage of an increase in foreign investment, they must establish a sense of trust and integrity with their internal and external stakeholders.
“The high rental yields of property, the economic stability of Dubai as well as strong education and healthcare sectors have given the city a robust infrastructure. The country’s security and its attractive residency programmes are also some of the reasons foreign investors remain confident in the market.
“For local companies to take advantage of an increase in foreign investment, they must establish a sense of trust and integrity with their internal and external stakeholders.
“Medallion has attracted foreign investors through competitive, complex and innovative deal structures that have placed performance at the centre of their proposals, with clearly defined best practices and KPIs.”
Power in disruption
Al Awar says that Medallion’s motto is, “never turn you back on a crisis. Instead, bounce back even stronger.” He says that, although disruption can cause problems for traditional business models, change can also bring significant opportunities.
He refers to the affordable real estate units market. “In 2020, foreign investors are now looking for new and innovative products that can accommodate their reduced spending capacity, with sustainable profits and longer financial time scales.”
In 2019, Medallion’s development business started the process of negotiating a private-public partnership to develop 4,000 affordable real estate units. The project, worth more than Dh2 billion, has seen Medallion collaborate with Asian investment bankers, European contractors and project managers, as well as Government asset and property managers from the UAE and a majority shareholder from Dubai. Medallion is also involved in a $300 million international venture that requires financial restructuring before being marketed in ME.
Strength in liquidity
Following the emergence of the coronavirus in Wuhan, Al Awar saw the potential for a wider global crisis. “Medallion’s executives saw in early 2020 that the Covid-19 outbreak in China could become a global issue, causing a large liquidity crisis. We worked exceptionally hard to develop a finance structuring product as part of our advisory business and we have seen exceptional demand for these products, which offer complex and innovative financing mechanisms.”
The road to recovery
Al Awar says that Dubai has overcome many crises in its history and thanks to the support of its strong and visionary leadership, he believes the emirate will recover from the economic impact of the coronavirus in a stronger position, with more knowledge.
“A destinations’ attractiveness to foreign real estate investors will be highly dependent on support from governments and Dubai is putting together one of the strongest and most generous recovery plans. Medallion Associates aims to be part of this great country’s strong and resurgent recovery.”
Learn more at medallionuae.com
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