History
Dubai World was established under a decree ratified on 2 March 2006 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai. He also holds the majority stake in Dubai World.
On 2 July 2006, it was launched as a holding company with more than 50,000 employees in over 100 cities around the globe. The group now has extensive real estate investments in the United States, the United Kingdom and South Africa. Dubai World made headlines in March 2008 after its chairman, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, threatened to take the fund's money out of Europe. Dubai World's threats came shortly after the European Union attempted to lay out "a set of principles for transparency, predictability and accountability" for sovereign wealth funds.
On 26 November 2009, Dubai World proposed to delay repayment of its debt, which raised the risk of the largest government default since the Argentine debt restructuring in 2001. Dubai World, the investment vehicle for the emirate, asked to delay for six months payment on $26 billion of debt. The extent of the debt rattled many markets causing many indices to drop; including oil prices. U.S. stocks fell sharply but rebounded from their lows as investors concluded that the damage might be contained. The Dow Jones industrial average lost about 155 points, or roughly 1.5 percent, in a shortened trading day, and other stock averages also sank. Oil prices plunged as much as 7 percent before recovering some ground later in the day.
On 12 December 2010, Dubai named Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, head of Emirates airline and uncle of the state’s ruler, as chairman of Dubai World in a board revamp a year after the company said it would halt loan repayments, roiling markets. The 51-year-old replaced Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem.
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