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Redington’s new path-breaking initiative

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8 years ago

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The Integrator talks to Ramkumar Balakrishnan, President, Redington Value Division and Sayantan Dev, Redington Gulf Vice President to understand their new data analytics practice.

Distribution in the region has seen various changes over the last couple of years with the most significant being the shift from product based to solutions-based.

Redington Value, a leader in the value-added distributor channel saw the opportunity for expansion and growth by becoming a services aggregator and solutions provider for the channel. The driving force behind this change has been to keep up with their customer’s behaviour and the way that they want to consume technology. Hence, the journey began from providing products and solutions that the channel needed to a trusted partner that delivers outcomes to their customers.

To take on the issue of going from successfully selling hardware, software, licenses and subscriptions to reselling cloud services, Redington set up their own market place which currently serves over 900 odd customers. They play the role of an aggregator by re-selling the services from AWS, Microsoft and several other vendors that they have on board their market place. Citrus Consulting was set up to be able to efficiently provide implementation, support, managed services through the channel.

Data Analytics opportunity

Then began the next phase of setting up their next initiative around data science and advanced analytics. According to Gartner, by the end of 2020, the advanced analytics market is forecast to grow to $22.8 billion.

“Between different market reports the analytics, addressable markets for Middle East and Africa is anywhere between 3 to 4 billion US dollars including all the products, all the services, this is a sizeable business opportunity in front of our partners. Our whole idea about setting up this practice was creating the capacity in terms of skills which can become complimenting to what our partners can deliver and jointly we can go and address this 4-billion-dollar market.”  says Ramkumar Balakrishnan, President, Redington Value Division. The fundamental basis upon which this practice has been set up is to enable their channel partners to move up the value chain and address these opportunities, he further adds.

Sayantan Dev, Redington Gulf Vice President went on to explains what this practice is going to bring to the forefront. “Unlike any infrastructure business, we went straight into the customer premise and tried to find out from the customer side. It starts with a business problem that the customer wants to resolve with the help of other IT solutions what we call the data science or to be more precise decision science.” The sources of data available largely depends on the customer. The structured or unstructured petabytes of data comes in and is given to the models which would be able to provide extremely accurate outcomes. Redington Value will soon be revealing the few world class vendors they have signed on.

One of a kind

This model of distributing big data analytics practice has neve been done before regionally and perhaps globally. A year and a half of work has gone into this initiative and for Redington it has been an immense learning curve, but they have taken the challenge head on to feature this pilot model globally along with their vendors. Before signing on global vendors, a lot of confidence had to be built. These vendors used to use the classic value add models to be able to sell their products. They will now benefit from a better more well put together structure. A team of 25 people is being put together under data science, where no one on the team is from a distribution background. The team is made up of people from consulting background and or a background of services, people who understand business more than technology. Additionally, there are several people who will be hired for Citrus from a delivery stand point. These people are divided into consultants – they are either technology consultants or domain consultants, technical pre-sales, sales. They will consult the end customer along with the partner.

There are two kinds of technical people – people who will write the algorithm i.e.; data scientists and then you have the coders. The people who are well versed with being able to write the right codes to create the right structure around big data.

Training programs

Redington Value makes training one of its core functions which they deliver to vendors and partners. Hosting around 500-600 training sessions in a calendar year for various vendors which includes certification trainings, enablement trainings, training for end customers hands on for what products they have bought and various kinds of trainings and have various calendars that keep coming out. “We are an authorised training centre for several of our vendors also. Now with the analytics and the new practice, education, enablement and training is going to be most critical.” says Ramkumar Balakrishnan. With customer success being a very important area of the practice.

Doubling digits

Redington has seen a window that this is a multimillion dollar business opportunity for their partners who will be delivering a major chunk of the services, this opportunity must be significant. If they are to take on VAR’s and System Integrators, this practice can become million dollars in a few years’ time. The real value relies on the services and not the product itself.

Redington is going to invest on creating horizontal technology specialisation then leverage Citrus to bring in vertical specialisation. But the partner cannot take on this investment by himself. For a partner it’s about picking a vertical, bringing in the domain expertise and then selecting one or two areas of technology, having the right amount of investment and then leveraging Redington says Ramkumar Balakrishnan.

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Dhruva to Rebrand as Ryan Across the Middle East, Signaling Unified Global Brand

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3 days ago

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September 2, 2026

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Dhruva will adopt the Ryan brand across the UAE and Saudi Arabia by the end of 2026, uniting the practice with Ryan’s global identity and international platform.

Dhruva, a leading tax consultancy firm in the Middle East, and Ryan, a leading global tax services and software provider, today announced that Dhruva will transition to the Ryan brand across the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The rebranding will be completed by the end of 2026, bringing the practice under Ryan’s global identity and reinforcing its position as part of the world’s leading global-scale specialist in business tax.

The transition marks the next phase of the strategic joint venture announced in 2025 and reflects the continued integration of Dhruva’s regional capabilities with Ryan’s global platform, technology, and international resources. Clients across the Middle East will continue to benefit from the same trusted advisory teams, enhanced by access to Ryan’s worldwide expertise and service capabilities.


“The Middle East has been a strategic growth market for us for many years, and we have built a strong advisory practice founded on deep client relationships, technical excellence, and local market understanding,” said Dinesh Kanabar, Founder, Chairman, and CEO, Dhruva Advisors and Vice Chairman, Ryan.

“The transition to the Ryan brand marks a significant milestone in our journey and reflects the strength of our partnership. By combining our regional expertise with Ryan’s global scale, technology, and international capabilities, we are creating an even stronger platform to support clients across the region as they navigate an increasingly dynamic and evolving tax landscape.”


“The Middle East is one of the most important growth markets for tax advisory services globally, and we are investing in the region with a long-term view,” said Tom Shave, President of Ryan’s European and Asia-Pacific Operations. “Uniting under the Ryan brand strengthens how we serve clients across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Europe—bringing seamless access to our global expertise, technology, and international resources through one trusted platform. This transition marks an important milestone in our integration and reinforces our commitment to the region’s future.”


Ryan will continue to invest in its Middle East operations, expanding its team, capabilities, and regional presence across key markets, including Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Riyadh. The practice provides comprehensive tax advisory services spanning corporate tax, value-added tax (VAT) and indirect tax, transfer pricing, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) tax structuring, research and development (R&D), and cross-border compliance.


“The response from our clients over the past year has been the clearest validation of this partnership,” said Nimish Goel, Leader, Middle East, Dhruva, a Ryan Affiliate. “From the outset, our teams have been integrating Ryan’s global capabilities in technology, specialized expertise, and best practices into the work we already lead in the region. Adopting the Ryan brand is the natural next step. It is the same people and the same trusted relationships, now carrying the name of the largest Firm in the world dedicated exclusively to business taxes.”


The rebranding will be implemented in phases during the second half of 2026, with signage, visual identity, and digital properties transitioning to the Ryan brand across the region.

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GFH Partners Manrre REIT (CEIC) PLC and Palmon Group unveil new temperature-controlled chemical warehouse in JAFZA

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8 months ago

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January 13, 2026

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GFH Partners Manrre REIT (CEIC) PLC (“Manrre” or “the Fund”), managed by GFH Partners Ltd. (“GFH Partners”),  together with its development manager Palmon Group FZCO (“Palmon Group”), today announced the opening of a specialised temperature-controlled chemical warehouse in Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza), further expanding the Fund’s Grade A logistics portfolio.

The inauguration ceremony was held in the presence of Mr Abdulla Bin Damithan, CEO and Managing Director, DP World GC, alongside senior officials and dignitaries from Jebel Ali Free Zone, GFH Partners, and Palmon Group.

Purpose-built and developed by Palmon Group to meet stringent international safety and compliance standards, the new facility reflects the rising regional demand for certified chemical storage infrastructure that supports manufacturing, energy, industrial services, and third-party logistics. The warehouse is situated on a 180,000sq ft plot with a built-up area of 112,000 sq ft, divided into three temperature-controlled chambers that reach a maximum height of 13 metres. The warehouse has been designed with advanced Early Suppression Fast Response (ESFR), and in-rack sprinkler systems to ensure safety and resilience across all operations.

The facility’s layout allows storage of a diverse range of hazard-classified chemicals. One chamber is configured for UN Class 3 and 4 chemicals, a second accommodates UN Class 5 chemicals, while the third has been developed for UN Class 6, 8, 9 and non-regulated materials. The warehouse offers capacity for 17,400 pallets and includes nine loading docks and three loading bays. The office space has been intentionally limited to three percent of the total built-up area, maximising operational efficiency and warehouse utility.

Speaking on the launch, Kunal Lahori, CEO of Palmon Group and Board Member of Manrre, said: “This new facility brings together precision engineering, regulatory compliance, and long-term value creation. Specialised chemical storage requires a high degree of control and risk management, and we have developed this warehouse to meet those expectations while offering flexibility and scalability for tenants. As one of the earliest developers in Jafza, Palmon Group remains committed to supporting the UAE’s logistics and industrial growth.”

Mohamed Ali, Head of GCC at GFH Partners, said: “The opening of this warehouse marks another important milestone in the expansion of the GFH Partners Manrre REIT portfolio, particularly in mission-critical industrial and logistics assets that serve high-growth sectors. The UAE continues to see strong demand for specialised storage solutions, and this facility reinforces our strategy to develop resilient, future-ready assets that deliver long-term value for our investors.”

The logistics hub is now fully operational and is leased to Safe Logistics. The new facility is expected to play a significant role in strengthening regulated supply chains and supporting Dubai’s position as one of the region’s foremost logistics and industrial hubs.

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Big Ticket joins DP World ILT20 Season 4 as Official Partner

Published

9 months ago

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December 20, 2025

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A professional cricket player for the Desert Vipers in mid-swing during a match. The batsman is wearing a dark green and black patterned jersey with red accents, a red helmet, and black protective leg pads. He is holding a wooden cricket bat high in a follow-through motion after playing a shot. The background shows a crowded stadium with purple and blue seating and a "DP World" branded wicket.

Big Ticket, the largest and longest-running guaranteed raffle draw in the Middle East (known for cash prizes, dream luxury cars, gold bars and coins) has joined the DP World International League T20 Season 4 as an Official Partner.

In recent years, Big Ticket has become more than just a raffle, it has gained the reputation of being a brand built around rewarding dreams and celebrating ambition, growing into one of the region’s largest and one of the most anticipated monthly draws in the UAE.

DP World ILT20 – the 34-match cricketing extravaganza – the biggest T20 tournament in the region featuring some of the most renowned global cricket stars is currently being played at the Dubai International Stadium, Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

A cricket player from the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders standing at the crease, ready to receive a ball. The player is dressed in a purple and gold uniform with matching gold-colored leg pads and a gold helmet. He holds the bat upward in a standard batting stance. The stadium background features blue seats, a "UAE Cricket" sign, and another player in an orange uniform in the distance.

DP World ILT20 Head of Partnerships Ishan Chopra: “We are delighted to welcome a UAE born raffle giant like Big Ticket as an Official Partner of the DP World ILT20. Their legacy of helping dreams come true aligns perfectly with our vision of delivering unforgettable, fan-first experiences across the league. This partnership strengthens our commitment to creating moments of excitement both on and off the field, and we look forward to elevating Season 4 together. With a household name like Big Ticket on board, we are confident of unlocking even more opportunities for fans to engage, celebrate and go All In for Cricket.”

Meanwhile, DP World ILT20 match tickets across all categories are available for the remaining tournament matches. Various spectator stand tickets start at AED 20 and hospitality packages start from AED 325. Fans can also book the new Sixes Lounge experience for AED 395, which includes unlimited food and beverages. Tickets can be purchased by visiting tickets.ilt20.ae or Virgin Megastores.

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