BizBahrain Magazine (May-June 2019)

Government
Bahrain and
France sign $2
billion worth of
agreements
As part of His Majesty King
Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa's
visit to the French Republic, the
Bahraini business delegation
accompanying HM the King
signed twelve agreements and
memorandam of understanding
with French companies and
institutions worth $2 billion,
with the aim of strengthening
bilateral economic relations
between the two countries
and increasing investment
cooperation in various fields.
This brings the total value of
the agreements with France up
to $4.63 billion.
The agreements signed
by the Bahraini business
delegation include:
• An agreement signed
between Tatweer
petroleum and TOTAL S.A.
around cooperation for the
new oil field exploration.
First Proptech
concept Estater
Bahrain has marked a new
milestone with the entry
of its first property technology
(proptech) company, Estater.
A revolutionary real
estate technology concept,
the Estater app offers an
intuitive platform for listing,
sharing, finding or managing
a property. The app operates
as an extension to Estater’s
real estate advisory offering,
utilising sophisticated GIS
• Five agreements signed
by Gulf Air with EPCOR,
Thales Inc., Michelin, CFM
and SAFRAN Landing
Systems.
• Two agreements
were signed by Osool
with Amundi Asset
Management and
Tikehau. The first
agreement is linked to
the capital market, while
the second one targets
alternative investments.
• An agreement was
signed by Yousef Bin
Ahmed Kanoo with AXA
Insurance Company
around the construction
of AXA’s headquarters in
Bahrain.
• Three agreements signed
by Bahrain Airport
Company with Thales,
who will be implementing
an ICT package under the
Airport Modernisation
Programme. An
agreement was also
signed with ADPI which
will provide the design
mapping to provide market
intelligence for developers,
investors and financiers.
Owing to its extensive
regional database, the
company boasts a 20% market
share in Kuwait and Bahrain,
in addition to its flagship
operations in India.
Estater’s launch in
Bahrain demonstrates the
growing opportunity for
real estate investment in
the country. In 2018 alone,
Bahrain received a record of
12 million visitors, according
to BTEA, contributing
indirectly to growth in
the real estate demand. In
addition, Bahrain offers the
region’s lowest operating
costs, at up to 30% less than
other GCC markets, while
also guaranteeing 100%
ownership in real estate
and supervision of
the Bahrain Airport
Modernisation
Programme. Finally, an
agreement was signed
with JCDecaux around
a ten-year advertising
concession.
Bahraini-French economic
and trade relations have
witnessed remarkable
development in recent years.
The most important stemmed
from the visit of HM the King
to France in 2015, which
resulted in the signing of
several landmark agreements,
including a framework
agreement and three MoUs
between both countries.
Non-oil trade between
Bahrain and France reached
$507 million in 2018, which
is a 105% increase over 2015.
Bahrain is home to prominent
French companies and banks,
including BNP Paribas, AXA
Insurance, Fives Group, Thales,
Veolia and the French Chamber
of Commerce and Industry.
for GCC nationals and a
large number of mixed-use
free-hold developments
offering opportunities to
foreign investors. The launch
of Bahrain’s Real Estate
Regulatory Authority (RERA)
in 2018 has also brought
greater transparency and
stability to the sector.
On the technology front,
companies such as Estater
benefit from Bahrain’s vibrant
startup ecosystem of over
90 companies, supported by
a network of government
agencies dedicated to helping
businesses succeed, including
the Bahrain Economic
Development Board (EDB),
StartUp Bahrain, Tamkeen,
and others.
The global proptech
industry is witnessing rapid
expansion. Notably, funding
Registeration for
VAT workshops
The National Bureau for
Revenue (NBR) recently
introduced a new electronic
service to allow VAT payers to
register their interest to attend
upcoming VAT workshops
by submitting a simple form
at https://www.nbr.gov.bh/
workshop_registration.
The workshops will
introduce attendees to key
VAT concepts, including
invoicing and filing, as well
as providing them with
the opportunity to visit the
interactive demo-center. The
registration feature builds on
Bahrain’s intensive efforts
to increase all VAT payers’
solid understanding of key
VAT concepts in addition
to ensuring the smooth
registration of companies
with annual supplies between
BHD 500,000 and BHD
5,000,000 by June.
For further information,
please contact the VAT Call
Center on 80008001 or vat@
nbr.gov.bh in addition to
leveraging the information
available on NBR’s website
(www.nbr.gov.bh), Instagram
and Twitter (@bahrainNBR).
into the sector grew by a
CAGR of 63% from 2012 to
2017, according to Venture
Scanner. In addition, a 2018
KPMG global survey of the
real estate industry reveals
that 93% of respondents
feel traditional real estate
organisations must engage
with proptech companies in
order to adapt to the changing
global environment.
May-June 2019
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