Apple…In Afghanistan
April 24th, 2013
Via Quartz, an interesting article on Apple’s popularity in Afghanistan: Where do people in Kabul go when they want to buy an iPhone? The same place as everybody else: an Apple Store. But one thing separates the Apple Store in, say, New York, from the one in Kabul: Apple either doesn’t know it exists, or […]
Read more »Afghanistan Has What China Wants
April 20th, 2013
Via Foreign Policy, a look at China’s interest in Afghanistan: As we near the date of withdrawal for U.S. combat forces in Afghanistan, the debate about the country’s largest neighbor has shifted. No longer are American analysts worried about Chinese investments free-riding on U.S. and NATO stability efforts. Now, the hope is that China’s massive […]
Read more »A Visit To The Libyan Stock Exchange
April 20th, 2013
Via Capitalist Exploits, an interesting report on the Libyan stock exchange: I spent most of the past week in Tripoli, Libya. The primary intent for this trip was to choose a location that will house our long-awaited property venture there. That part of the trip went well; we have access to several feasible options in […]
Read more »The Next, And Overlooked, VC Opportunity: The Middle East
April 20th, 2013
Via the Harvard Business Review, an interesting look at venture capital in the Middle East: Venture capital is ignoring the Middle East for all the wrong reasons. Ultimately, playing it safe will cause them to yield new opportunities. I’ve interviewed over 150 impressive, young entrepreneurs and engineers throughout the Arab world. Many have visited the […]
Read more »Boomtowns Leading Indonesia Growth
April 15th, 2013
Via Bloomberg, an article on Indonesia’s quick economic growth: Five years ago, property agent Daisul Akhyar took 20 minutes to drive to work in Pekanbaru, capital of Indonesia’s Riau province. Now, he can spend two hours in traffic after a surge in wealth transformed the city. “If you live in Riau now, it’s like living […]
Read more »South Sudan
April 15th, 2013
Via Outside Magazine, an interesting profile of the new country of South Sudan, a nation blessed with oil, water, and a safari bonanza but without roads, laws, or infrastructure: A Cattleman from the Mundari tribe rubs hash on his face to protect himself from insects in a cattle camp on the road thirty-eight kilometers […]
Read more »Focusing primarily on The New Seven Sisters - the largely state owned petroleum companies from the emerging world that have become key players in the oil & gas industry as identified by Carola Hoyos, Chief Energy Correspondent for The Financial Times - but spanning other nascent opportunities around the globe that may hold potential in the years ahead, Wildcats & Black Sheep is a place for the adventurous to contemplate & evaluate the emerging markets of tomorrow.