The billionaire for whom anything is possible
Dec 5 2006
By Tony Barrett, Liverpool Echo
Tony Barrett finds out just who Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum is and why he wants to spend £450m to buy Liverpool FC
THERE are currently 793 billionaires in the world, according to international finance experts Forbes.
And Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum - "Sheikh Mo" to his friends - is, if you listen to those in the know, one of the best of them.
"He would probably be the shrewdest of the bunch," says Luisa Kroll, associate editor at Forbes magazine.
When you consider the "bunch" includes the likes of Microsoft founder Bill Gates and the Sultan of Brunei, that's not a bad testimonial to have on your CV.
Estimates of Maktoum's personal wealth are varied simply because so much of his money is tied up in major investments all over the globe, but Stan Lock, a stock trader for the investment management company Brewin Dolphin Securities, reckons he could "buy Liverpool with spare change".
Maktoum certainly makes his money work for him and Dubai Investment Capital, the overseas investment arm of Dubai Holdings, recently acquired the Tussauds Group for £800m and Travelodge for £675m.
His personal ambition, and the ambition of the Dubai government and the multitude of investment companies which he leads, is seemingly boundless.
"Under Sheikh Mohammed," says Khalaf Al Habtoor, a billionaire construction magnate whose firm helped build hotels, hospitals and airport facilities in Dubai, "anything is possible".
But the question is, why would he - or, at the very least, his associates - buy Liverpool Football Club?
"It is partly driven by the desire of companies like Dubai International Capital to broaden their international portfolio," says Professor Tom Cannon, the Merseyside-born Dean of London Business School.
"They are looking to build up a broad spread of investments in companies outside Dubai that are both stable and secure.
"Their ambition is huge. They have recently bought Tussauds and the London Eye and they even tried to buy a number of American ports, including Philadelphia, but that was blocked by the US Senate."
The man most closely connected with the bid to buy Liverpool is Sameer Al Ansari, a Reds fanatic who is also Chief Executive Officer of Dubai International Capital.
He has acted as the figurehead in the deal but business insiders believe the interest goes all the way back to Maktoum himself.
"Ansari is a key player in Maktoum's whole operation," says one. "He is very highly thought of, but it is highly unlikely that he would have completed a move of this scale without being given the go-ahead by Maktoum.
"You have to think of Dubai as a PLC which is ruled by a chief executive who gives orders to a board of hand-picked subordinates. They then implement policy without the need for approval from any elected body.
"Maktoum is the country's chief executive and he either owns or controls the companies that run almost everything of any significance."
Their plans for Liverpool FC are, as yet, unknown. Depending on who you speak to the proposed deal is either simply an investment or it is the starting point of an attempt to turn Liverpool FC into one of the biggest hitters in world football.
"I would be astonished if they ploughed significant amounts into squad rebuilding," says Prof Cannon. "It is more likely to be part of a portfolio building strategy."
But racehorse trainer Mick Quinn, a lifelong Liverpool fan, believes that, should he invest in the Reds, the Crown Prince of Dubai could have a similar effect on football.
"First and foremost, he is a winner," says Quinn.
" Maktoum got involved in racing in the 1970s and he took on all the big stables like Oppenheimer, Sangsters and the Aga Khan's. He surpassed them.
"He pumped a lot of money into it, he's very hands on and the success this has brought is there for everyone to see.
"Maktoum is very competitive - all he wants is to win."
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