Should Jerry Inzerillo be the next NEOM boss?

With Nadhmi Al-Nasr no longer the CEO of NEOM, big two questions arise: why, and who will replace him?

The ‘why’ is complicated: there are whispers that the $500bn mega-futuristic project, which is the centrepiece of Saudi Arabia’s plans to diversify its dependency on oil, is running late and over budget. It could also be that the Kingdom’s plans to create a global brand as its cornerstone – exactly as Emirates did brilliantly for Dubai – needs a revamp.

For now, Eng. Aiman Al-Mudaifer takes the helm of the organisation. Head of PIF’s Local Real Estate Division since 2018, Eng. Al-Mudaifer has a “deep and strategic understanding of NEOM and its projects,” the company said.

But I also hear that NEOM is casting a wide net to consider if a new face is needed for the next phase. Is this the time for Jerry Inzerillo to step forward? As Group CEO of the Diriyah Company since 2018, Inzerillo has produced nothing short of magic on the $50 billion mega-project.

Diriyah, The City of Earth is located on the outskirts of Saudi Arabia’s capital city, Riyadh, and at its core is the UNESCO World Heritage Site of At-Turaif, the historic capital of the First Saudi State. Thanks to Inzerillo, it has already become one of the most talked about and impressive projects on the planet.

He has previously been President and CEO of IMG Artists, president of the Kerzner Entertainment Group, and played a starring role in the growth of South Africa’s Sun City.

More importantly, there are probably only a handful of CEOs anywhere on the planet more respected than Inzerillo.

If NEOM needs the “Emirates” factor, he is surely the man who can deliver it.

The IPOs to watch in 2025

Lulu, Drake & Scull, Dubai Taxi Company, Spinneys – there’s been no shortage of brilliant IPOs in the UAE in 2024. But I  predict 2025 will be even bigger.

The most exciting IPO I expect to be is FIVE Holdings, run by Kabir Mulchandani. Not just because the man behind the likes of great hotels on the Palm Jumeirah and JBR is likely to get a $2.5 billion valuation, but because he has set aside $200 million in shares for long serving staff. This includes some very junior staff working as valets and cooks, who will become overnight millionaires. That promises to be the story of 2025.

Dubizzle Group, which runs platforms including Dubizzle and Bayut, is, I hear, in talks with bankers over a 2025 IPO that could come in at close to $1 billion. Great work.

Also, keep an eye on FlyDubai. The parent company Emirates flirted with the idea of a stock market flotation many times but never did it. There is growing talk that its hugely successful low-cost airline could spin off down that route.

Congrats to President Musk

In case you missed it, Elon Musk ended up winning the US presidency quite easily last week, taking 312 electoral college votes to Kamala Harris’s 226. Ahead of his inauguration on January 20^th next year, it is worth watching what role he gives to Donald Trump.

Confused? Let’s not kid ourselves, Musk is the new President, with Trump playing second fiddle. Just ask Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who waited two years for a call with Trump – only for Musk to appear on the video link. With Musk also in direct contact with Russia’s president Putin, there is a good chance President Musk really can end that conflict.

The most pressing issues right now, China/Taiwan, North Korea/South Korea, plus the conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine – along with global trade and climate change –  are likely to be Musk’s to solve.

Don’t feel sorry for Trump – he gets to live in the White House again, will get most of the credit, earn $400,000 a year, and doesn’t even have to do the job this time around.

The guy I feel really sorry for is JD Vance.

^{Anil Bhoyrul, Managing Director of Arabian Business}

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