07. ABDULLA AL FUTTAIM
Net worth: 4.1 Billion dollars
Abdulla Al Futtaim is an Emirati billionaire, owner of Al-Futtaim Group, and the cousin of fellow billionaire Majid Al Futtaim. He earned his wealth through operations in the automotive field, as well as retail and real estate.
Abdulla Al Futtaim owns conglomerate Al Futtaim Group, which is run by his son Omar. It is the exclusive distributor of Toyota and Honda vehicles in the United Arab Emirates, and also owns one of the country’s largest insurance companies, Orient Insurance Co. , which insures most of local real estate behemoth Emaar’s properties. After Dubai Festival City and Cairo Festival City, Al Futtaim is set to open Doha Festival city in April 2017. Al Futtaim is the cousin of Majid Al Futtaim, also a billionaire.
07. SUHAIL BAHWAN
Net worth: 4.1 Billion dollars
Suhail Bahwan started out as a trader sailing a dhow he inherited from his father, and plied the waters between Oman and India. He never turned much of a profit, so in 1965 he moved from his small coastal village of Sur to Muscat, opening a shop in the souq. He sold fishing nets, boating accessories and building materials, before scoring his first license in 1968 with Seiko, followed by Toshiba.
He and his late brother Saud became Toyota’s distributors in Oman in 1975, but split nearly 30 years later, with Saud keeping the dealership. (Saud’s son Mohammed is also a billionaire.) Suhail’s daughter Amal now helps run the Suhail Bahwan Group, which is the biggest privately-owned business in Oman, with interests in fertilizers, healthcare and construction.