while you are preoccupied with false fears for your survival...
When Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that the Lebanon war was a sign of the "birth pangs of a new Middle East," she was both dramatically wrong and partially right. A "new Middle East" is indeed being born, but it has little to do with Lebanon or President Bush's democracy agenda. The "new Middle East" is forming in the boardrooms of new and innovative businesses, in assertive private sectors demanding reform, in booming equity markets, cash-rich banks, state-owned investment houses and individual investors with global outlooks, and in a new generation of entrepreneurs and businessmen (and women) creating real companies with real underlying values.
The folks at the Carlyle Group see this. Last week, as "Middle East crisis" graphics flickered on our TV screens, they announced a $1.3 billion fund for investment in the region. In the past, Carlyle principally saw the Middle East as a source of funds for investments elsewhere. This time it sees the Middle East as an investment target.
Carlyle is not alone. The big investment banks -- Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers -- are increasing their presence in the region, and Western private equity and hedge fund money is circling.
Delicious
Digg
Reddit
Newsvine
Furl
Google
Yahoo
