MANAMA: Five Bahraini families have been featured on the Forbes list of the Top 100 Family Businesses in the Middle East.
The highest-ranked home-grown business on the list, in 30th place, is Y K Almoayyed and Sons, which was established in 1940 by Yousuf Khalil Almoayyed.
Chaired by Farouk Almoayyed currently, the company’s portfolio includes automobiles, heavy equipment, building materials, electronics and home appliances, furnishing, ready-mix concrete and high-end luxury goods.
Talking to the GDN, Mr Almoayyed said, “Becoming the top Bahraini family business on the list is a prestigious accolade and acknowledges the inherent strength of our organisation and its brand value.”
He added, “The group recognises the efforts of all our employees in making this happen. We consider the staff as members of our family and have not cut any jobs even as we deal with the difficult situation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. However, there are ups and downs in any business and we are optimistic about the future.”
In 39th place is Yusuf Bin Ahmed Kanoo (YBA Kanoo), the longest running Bahraini enterprise on the list.
Formed in 1890 as a trading and shipping firm by Haji Yusuf bin Ahmed Kanoo, the group has since diversified into travel, machinery, engineering, logistics, property, energy, industrial chemicals and commercial activities.
Led by Khalid Kanoo, the group’s wholly-owned activities are spread across Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Oman and Qatar, with investments across Africa, Europe and Asia.
“Being one of the top 100 Family Businesses in the Middle East and the second ranking in Bahrain adds more pride to our 130th anniversary celebrations. The success that the brand has achieved in its long years in business is attributed to the hard work of six generations of Kanoo family members who dedicated their lives to growing and expanding the group,” said YBA Kanoo Group director Nabeel Kanoo.
The third home-grown business on the list is Abdulla Yousif Fakhro Group, ranked 74.
With Dr Esam Abdulla Fakhro as chairman, the group has businesses in automobile, industrial products, electronics, telecommunications, insurance, contracting, shipping and logistics.
Ranked 80 on the list, Al Zayani Investments Group is the youngest Bahraini business to be featured.
Founded in 1977, it has a diverse business portfolio that includes automotive, healthcare, manufacturing, real estate, service businesses and food and beverages and is led by Nawaf Al Zayani.
One of Bahrain’s pioneers in the construction sector, the Haji Hassan Group, established in 1952, has been ranked 99. The group was behind the construction of the Bahrain International Circuit – the first professional racing track in the region and is currently led by Adel Hassan Al A’ali as chairman.
With 36 family businesses, Saudi Arabia dominates the Forbes list, followed by the UAE with 21 entries.
Forbes said family businesses are the backbone of the Middle East’s economies, with some of the largest businesses in the region run by families through private companies.
“Most of the companies on our list of the Top 100 Family Businesses in the Middle East have been passed down through at least one generation, with 10 companies more than a century old, and 13 formed between 75 and 100 years ago,” said the regional business publication.
For compiling the list, Forbes said it looked at approximately 200 Arab family-owned businesses in the region.
Factors considered include, group investments in regional and global stock exchanges and real estate assets, business diversification and the number of sectors in which they have significant operations, types of business activity and to what extent they have been affected by the ongoing crisis, number of employees, number of countries they are present in and geographical diversification and date of establishment.
avinash@gdn.com.bh
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