The Four Seasons

The Four Seasons, originally referring to the traditional seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter, may refer to:

Music and dance

Visual arts

Film and television

Private company limited by shares

A private company limited by shares, usually called a private limited company (Ltd.) (though this can theoretically also refer to a private company limited by guarantee), is the private limited type of company incorporated under the laws of England and Wales, Scotland, that of certain Commonwealth countries and the Republic of Ireland. It has shareholders with limited liability and its shares may not be offered to the general public, unlike those of a public limited company (plc).

"Limited by shares" means that the company has shareholders, and that the liability of the shareholders to creditors of the company is limited to the capital originally invested, i.e. the nominal value of the shares and any premium paid in return for the issue of the shares by the company. A shareholder's personal assets are thereby protected in the event of the company's insolvency, but money invested in the company will be lost.

A limited company may be "private" or "public". A private limited company's disclosure requirements are lighter, but for this reason its shares may not be offered to the general public (and therefore cannot be traded on a public stock exchange). This is the major distinguishing feature between a private limited company and a public limited company. Most companies, particularly small companies, are private.

Dubai International Airport

Dubai International Airport (IATA: DXB, ICAO: OMDB) (Arabic: مطار دبي الدولي‎) is the primary airport serving Dubai, United Arab Emirates and is the world's busiest airport by international passenger traffic. It is also the 3rd busiest airport in the world by passenger traffic, the 6th busiest cargo airport in world and the busiest hub for the Airbus A380. In 2015, DXB handled 78 million passengers, 2.51 million tonnes of cargo and registered 403,517 aircraft movements.

Dubai International is situated in the Al Garhoud district, 2.5 nautical miles (4.6 km; 2.9 mi) east of Dubai and spread over an area of 2,900 hectares (7,200 acres) of land. The airport is operated by the Dubai Airports Company and is the home base of Dubai's international airlines, Emirates and flydubai. The Emirates hub is the largest airline hub in the Middle East; Emirates handles around 65% of all passenger traffic and accounts for about 45% of all aircraft movements at the airport. Dubai Airport is also the base for low-cost carrier flydubai which handles 11.6% of passenger traffic at DXB. The airport consists of three terminals and has a total capacity of 75 million passengers annually. Terminal 3 is the second largest building in the world by floor space and the largest airport terminal in the world. As of January 2016, there are over 7,700 weekly flights operated by 140 airlines to over 270 destinations across all six inhabited continents.

Dubai International Financial Centre

The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is a federal financial free zone situated in the Emirate of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The DIFC was established pursuant to UAE Federal Decree No. 35 of 2004, UAE Federal Law No. 8 of 2004 and Dubai Law No. 12 of 2004. The DIFC occupies a physical territory of approximately 110 acres. It has its own legal system and courts distinct from those of the wider UAE, with jurisdiction over corporate, commercial, civil, employment, trusts and securities law matters.

The DIFC aims to provide a platform for business and financial institutions to reach into and out of the emerging markets of the region. It was established to create an environment for growth, progress and economic development in the UAE and the wider region by providing the needed legal and business as well as physical infrastructure benchmarked against international standards.

Independent jurisdiction

The DIFC is an independent jurisdiction under the UAE Constitution, with its own civil and commercial laws distinct from those of the wider UAE. DIFC laws and regulations are written in English and default to English law in the event of an ambiguity. The DIFC also has its own courts, with judges taken from leading common law jurisdictions including England, Singapore and Hong Kong. The DIFC’s independent jurisdiction extends to a range of areas including corporate, commercial, civil, employment, trusts, and securities law matters. Other laws of the UAE or the Emirate of Dubai, such as criminal law and immigration regulations, continue to apply within the DIFC.

Financial centre

A financial centre is a location that is home to a cluster of nationally or internationally significant financial services providers such as banks, investment managers or stock exchanges. A prominent financial centre can be described as an international financial centre or a global financial centre and is often also a global city. An offshore financial centre is typically a smaller, low-tax jurisdiction that primarily serves non-residents.

Background

Financial centres are locations with an agglomeration of participants in financial markets and venues for these activities to take place. Participants can include financial intermediaries (such as banks), institutional investors (such as investment managers), as well as central banks. Trading activity may take place on venues such as exchanges and involve clearing houses, although many transactions take place over-the-counter (OTC), that is directly between participants. Financial centres may host companies that offer advisory services, for example relating to mergers and acquisitions, or which participate in other areas of finance, such as private equity and reinsurance.